Participants of the Moscow peace conference on Afghanistan asked Taleban to leave armed conflicts and join the Afghan peace process. Moscow yesterday invited 12 states, including from the European Union and Central Asia, to take part in consultations devoted to the national reconciliation process in Afghanistan and the start of direct talks between the government and Taleban insurgents. A press release from Russian Foreign Ministry said Afghanistan’s conflict does not have a military solution and the conflict must be ended through reconciliation and political dialogue. The United States, which has kept a limited military presence in Afghanistan since NATO withdrawal in 2014, was also invited but turned down taking part despite Russia’s insistence that it was key to Afghan settlement as an important player in the region. “I think just to end it, we just felt that these talks – it was unclear to us what the purpose was,” US State Department spokesman Mark Toner said on Tuesday, in explaining the US’ absence. “It seemed to be a unilateral Russian attempt to assert influence in the region that we felt wasn’t constructive at this time,” he noted.
Follow TKG on Twitter & Facebook
