Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in an interview to Bloomberg said that the Taliban have to indulge in direct talks with the government if they want to end the 17-year war.
According to President Ghani in the interview, the Taliban and other terrorist outfits are trying “to turn our beautiful country into a breeding ground of violence. We have to pursue peace, a lasting, just and sustainable peace.”
Ghani also confirmed that he will be contesting as a presidential candidate in 2019 again for the Presidential elections as he expressed he wants to “finish what was started”. However, according to Bloomberg, the U.S. are “struggling to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table.”
The Taliban have not really cooperated much when it comes to stability and the greater good of Afghan citizens. Before the recent parliamentary elections that took place, the Taliban issued statements stating that they will be open to attacking security personnel who are providing security for elections.
The worrying trend is that, as per the latest Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction report, the Afghan government’s hold over districts in terms of control or influence has decreased down to 55.5% while the “contested” districts have seen an increase in their share.
