The opening session of peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Doha in September 2020 (French)

Kabul -

Next week, the Qatari capital, Doha, will host the second round of the United Nations meeting to review the situation in Afghan territories, and announce the appointment of a special envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for peace and reconciliation affairs in Afghanistan to start a national dialogue to form an inclusive government.

Dialogue is the essential part of the Special Representative's mission, and the decision to appoint him comes after Feridun Sinirlioglu, Coordinator of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, submitted a report to Antonio Guterres following a 7-month study of the situation in Afghanistan.

Guterres sent the report to the Security Council to take a decision on it, and after the meeting held on January 8 to discuss it, the Council approved the decision to appoint a special representative for Afghanistan, who should be an expert in the field of human rights and have the necessary experience in international issues, peace affairs and conflict resolution. .

A Taliban delegation headed by Abdul Salam Hanafi, Afghan Deputy Prime Minister (right) during peace talks in Doha (French)

Big chance

Many Afghans believe that the road map announced by the United Nations weeks ago confirms that the international community still cares about the Afghan file in light of the Ukraine crisis, the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, and the tension in the Red Sea. This is a great opportunity that the current government and those who oppose it must exploit for the benefit of Afghanistan.

They also believe that the Taliban movement needs international recognition of its government, lifting international sanctions on Afghan banks, and allowing travel for its officials, and that the Afghan people need a constitution that regulates their political and social life and to feel safe in their country and not think about immigration, explaining that implementing the map provides the appropriate solution to the crisis. Afghan.

In this context, Abdul Karim Khorram, director of the office of former Afghan President Hamid Karzai, told Al Jazeera Net that, over the past two years, the Security Council issued 4 fateful decisions regarding Afghanistan.

He believes that it is evidence that the international community cares about the Afghan issue, that the United Nations has drawn up a road map to get out of the current crisis and that the Security Council has approved it, and that the mission of the representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations is different this time from previous ones, “and now the ball is in the court of the Afghans to decide how to benefit from it.”

The Afghan government announced, through its Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mottaki, that it rejects the appointment of a special representative of the United Nations, and that it will not deal with him because the appointment is an “unnecessary step.”

Mottaki told Al Jazeera Net, "We welcome the positive points in the report of the Coordinator-General of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in light of the presence of its mission. There is no need to appoint another representative, and the United Nations can continue its activities in Afghanistan through its mission office in the country."

It is understandable that the Taliban movement is concerned about the appointment of this special envoy, whose primary mission is to start a national dialogue between the Taliban and its opponents and to form a comprehensive government that represents all segments of the Afghan people, despite the movement’s assertion that it has formed a government that includes all ethnicities present in the country, and that it controls all Afghan lands. It put an end to the war that lasted more than four decades.

Internal issue

Zakir Jalali, an official in the Afghan Foreign Ministry, told Al Jazeera Net, “The basic question is: What is the need to appoint another special representative? What will his mission be? All the reasons mentioned to justify his appointment are the same ones that the current mission is undertaking, and the Afghan government is ready to discuss all outstanding issues with society.” "International affairs through bilateral channels, and if the representative wants to discuss internal issues, we are not ready because it is an internal matter and does not concern foreigners."

If opponents of the Afghan government are able to unite their ranks against the Taliban, the appointment of the special representative will be a real challenge for the movement because since it came to power in 2021, it has been ignoring opponents.

International relations researcher Najib Karimi believes that the Taliban ignores its opponents and does not allow them to exercise their political role in Afghanistan, and that appointing a special representative of the United Nations will provide an international platform for these opponents, and will deal with them as a legitimate party in the Afghan file, and this is what the Taliban does not want.

He told Al Jazeera Net that what distinguishes the mission of the new representative is that he will move between international capitals to discuss the Afghan peace process, while the United Nations mission is to follow up on internal affairs in Afghanistan.

As for the writer and political researcher Ramadan Sharifi, he told Al Jazeera Net, "Whether the Taliban accepts it or not, the United Nations will appoint a special representative for Afghanistan, and at the Doha meeting, the international community will agree on the road map that leads to resolving the conflict in the country."

A source at the United Nations - who preferred to remain anonymous - told Al Jazeera Net that in addition to UN Special Coordinator Feridun Sinirlioglu, there are other names from Turkey, the Emirates, Jordan, Japan and Norway who are being nominated as special envoys to Afghanistan. He revealed that Sinirlioglu and the current UAE representative to the United Nations, Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, are among the candidates.

The Afghan government believes that its foreign policy strategy and establishing relations with neighboring countries is successful (Associated Press)

Essential task

A contact group of six regional countries will be formed at the Doha meeting, and its mission will be to contact the Taliban and the international community. Representatives of the permanent members of the Security Council, representatives of Norway, Canada, Pakistan, Iran and civil society will participate in the meeting.

The United Nations invited Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mottaki to the meeting, but the Foreign Ministry source told Al Jazeera Net, "The Afghan government wants to deal with the international community and neighboring countries, but the minister's participation is not confirmed yet."

The main task of the Doha meeting is to complete and finalize the third and fourth parts of the Doha Agreement between the Taliban and the United States, which confirmed the start of the intra-Afghan dialogue, the end of the conflict, and the approval of the political road map for the future of Afghanistan.

A source in the Taliban’s political office in Doha - who preferred to remain anonymous - told Al Jazeera Net that the meeting’s agenda includes four basic issues, which are:

  • Appointment of a special representative to the United Nations.

  • Forming a contact group consisting of different countries.

  • Establishing a mechanism for dealing between the Taliban and the opposition.

  • Arranging incentives in various fields to be offered to the Taliban if this process is accompanied.

He adds that appointing a special representative will not achieve anything without the support of the Taliban, and "so far, Kandahar has not been given the green light to participate in the meeting."

Source: Al Jazeera