Al-Jazeera correspondent reported that the second session of talks between the delegations of the Afghan government and the Taliban movement in Doha began a short time ago, after the inaugural round ended earlier this morning in a positive atmosphere, and it was agreed to form a committee consisting of 14 members equally between the two parties to discuss the agenda negotiations.

The new round of negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban movement was launched in the Qatari capital this morning, discussing files and issues described as crucial.

A member of the Taliban's political bureau, Suhail Shaheen, told Al Jazeera that the movement is not looking for access to power through military force, and that it is looking positively at the current round of Doha talks.

Shaheen indicated that the government rejected a previous offer to reduce escalation, stressing that what distinguishes the current round of talks is the presence of a high-level government delegation.


He added that the Taliban have the ability to control the whole of Afghanistan, but they want to achieve peace, and called on the government to "show enough seriousness."

In his speech during the opening of the talks, the head of the Taliban's political office, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, said in Doha that the movement will make every effort to reach a positive outcome in the Afghan peace talks.

Barader added that the Afghan negotiations began 10 months ago, but did not make tangible progress as expected, and stressed that the Taliban would not allow any attempt to undermine the territorial integrity of Afghanistan, he said.

Flexibility for peace

For his part, Abdullah Abdullah, head of the Afghan Reconciliation Committee and head of the government delegation, said that achieving peace in the country requires flexibility on both sides, adding that the ground is now suitable for peace in Afghanistan.

Abdullah added during the opening session that negotiations must be accelerated to reach a solution that satisfies everyone, and that there is no military solution to the problem of Afghanistan, which necessitates efforts to reach a political solution.

He explained that the Afghan people are the losers from the government's use of force and the Taliban's attempt to win militarily, as he described it.


Field developments

On the ground, the Afghan Ministry of Interior announced that one civilian was killed and nine others were injured in a landmine explosion in the city of Aybak (northwest of the country), which is witnessing confrontations between Afghan government forces and Taliban militants.

Government forces are continuing their campaign for the third day in a row to regain the city of Spin Boldak and the strategic Chaman crossing on the border with Pakistan in Kandahar province.

The Afghan Ministry of Defense announced the killing of 284 Taliban fighters in military operations carried out in a number of provinces, most notably Balkh, Kandahar, Helmand, Takhar, Kabul, Nangarhar, Ghazni and Khost, during the past 24 hours, and said that it defused 15 explosive devices.

On the other hand, the Taliban announced its control over the center of Dand District in Kandahar Province, and said that it had taken control of equipment and machinery in the district after the withdrawal of government forces from it.

The Taliban's media spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, also broadcast a video from the Spin Boldak border area with Pakistan showing the movement's control of the area.

The Taliban's media committee broadcast an interview with the director of customs for the border region, with the aim of confirming the movement's complete control over the administration of the region.


Neighborhood anxiety

For his part, Pakistani Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that the border security authorities are monitoring what is happening near the Chaman border crossing with Afghanistan and are taking the necessary steps.

Islamabad announced that it had managed to fence about 90% of the border area.

Pakistan has continued to close its land border with Afghanistan since July 6, in order to prevent the spread of the Corona virus, as announced.

However, local sources in Pakistan did not rule out that the closure was for fear of new waves of Afghan asylum in Pakistan due to the deteriorating security situation.

The Pakistani security authorities have raised the state of alert along the border with Afghanistan.


Russia's position

While neighboring countries are worried about the current developments in Afghanistan, the Russian President's special envoy to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, expressed his country's concern about the escalation of hostilities in the country, saying that "we believe that the Taliban is not seeking to seize power."

Kabulov added - in an interview with Anadolu Agency - that "the most active clashes occur in the northern provinces bordering the Central Asian countries, allies and partners of Russia," and stressed that the Taliban's goal is to strengthen their position before the start of peace negotiations.

The Russian official added that the Taliban is aware of the negative consequences of the scenario of using violence to gain power, and therefore is not interested in implementing it, noting that the movement "has repeatedly confirmed through negotiations - including its contacts with us - its intention to achieve reconciliation."


He added that Moscow had taken steps to prevent the spread of combat activities from Afghanistan to neighboring countries, and said, "We discussed this issue directly with the Taliban delegation during its visit to Moscow."

Commenting on the idea of ​​the temporary deployment of US forces in Central Asian countries, he said that "the process of withdrawing US forces from Afghanistan should not turn into the transfer of US military infrastructure to neighboring countries."

Kabulov stated that "the situation in Afghanistan is developing very dynamically, and Moscow is ready - as an active player - to host intra-Afghan meetings with the aim of strengthening peace talks." He did not rule out holding meetings in Moscow in the near future, especially within the framework of the "expanded troika" for Afghanistan (which It includes Russia, the United States, China, and Pakistan).