Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan offer to host future rounds of Afghan peace talks

Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan offered to hold future rounds of the intra-Afghan peace talks as the first round of negotiations between Afghanistan and the Taliban took place on Saturday, September 12.

The intra-Afghan peace talks are being held in Doha at the moment since the Taliban has a political office in Qatar. Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan have offered to host future talks to provide a platform for the ongoing peace talks that could end four decades of conflict in Afghanistan.

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Afghan peace process

Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov and Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov both addressed the Afghan peace talks via video conference on Saturday. Kamilov said, "I would like to reaffirm Uzbekistan's readiness to host one of the rounds of the intra-Afghan talks in the wonderful city of Samarkand”. Turkmen Foreign Minister Meredov during his address stated that his country wholeheartedly supported the peace process in Afghanistan and wished to “contribute to the strengthening of regional security and stability”.

Turkmen Foreign Ministry, in a press release, further said that the country has always advocated for all manner of disputes to be resolved “exclusively via diplomatic and political instruments”, and added that Turkmenistan is willing to contribute to the cause by hosting future peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

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The intra-Afghan peace talks are being considered a diplomatic breakthrough that could potentially stabilise the war-torn country after nearly four decades of conflict. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attended the talks in Qatar and, in a statement, said the peace talks were a historic opportunity to end the conflict in the country as the people of Afghanistan have ‘carried the burden of war for too long’.

On February 29, the Taliban and the United States reached a landmark agreement wherein the US vowed to reduce its troop strength in Afghanistan and the Taliban and Afghan government agreed to swap prisoners. The Taliban agreed to a concrete date for the beginning of the peace talks after the last batch of 400 Taliban prisoners were released by the Afghan government.

(With ANI Inputs)

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