Latest news with #DohaAgreement
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Commentary: Trump caved to the Taliban in Afghanistan. Will he repeat in the Russia-Ukraine talks?
President Donald Trump's campaign promise to end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours once he was elected has proved to be utter nonsense as experts grade his first 100 days in office. One day, he blames the cause of the war on Ukraine, and then, finally, he criticizes Vladimir Putin after a Russian ballistic missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Sumy killed more than 30 people and wounded more than 80 on Palm Sunday. Following Trump's criticism of his favorite Russian, Putin called for a three-day ceasefire in early May, offering a glimmer of hope for progress toward peace talks, but it falls short of a permanent ceasefire and comes from the cunning Russian strongman who has played Trump like a fiddle thus far. One of Trump's conditions for supporting Ukraine's independence and ending the war is to wangle an earth minerals deal out of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump wouldn't even agree to Zelenskyy's request for a security agreement from the U.S. as part of this pact to extract minerals from Ukraine for the U.S. Here is the transactional president in action, seldom weighing the integrity of a decision, instead focusing on how to take credit for the 'art of the deal.' That's the title of the book he used to convince gullible MAGA and independent voters he was more than the guy whose businesses filed for bankruptcy several times over his checkered career. Buried in the news and analysis of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan is the failed strategy of Trump and his negotiators that played right into the Taliban's hands. He was outfoxed in the negotiations. To cover it up, he simply shifted the blame to President Joe Biden, who does bear significant responsibility for a chaotic and poorly managed evacuation. But before Biden took office in 2021, Trump and his negotiators in peace talks with the Taliban from 2018 to 2020 approved the Doha agreement, the rules of engagement between the U.S. and the Taliban as the U.S. left an unsuccessful 20-year mission in Afghanistan. Lisa Curtis, formerly a deputy assistant to the president and National Security Council senior director for South and Central Asia during Trump's first term, penned an insightful essay for the conservative Hoover Institution that assigns blame where Trump never looks. 'How the Doha Agreement Guaranteed U.S. Failure in Afghanistan' proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Trump in 2020 paved the way for the ignominious Afghanistan pullout and the harsh and absolute rule of the Taliban to follow. According to Curtis, the first mistake of the Trump administration was excluding the Afghan government from the peace talks leading up to the agreement, a mistake Trump repeated as he attempted to sideline Zelenskyy in the peace talks over Ukraine. The second mistake occurred when the Taliban, with peace talks in progress, car-bombed Bagram Airfield, a U.S. facility at the time, killing at least two Afghans and wounding 80. According to Curtis, this would have been the moment to halt the peace talks so the Taliban would understand how seriously America took attacks on its mission precisely at the time negotiations were underway. Trump did not suspend talks. To add insult to injury, the Taliban took an American hostage, which should have once again shut down peace talks, but Trump signed Doha a month later — what Curtis calls 'the ultimate signal of U.S. weakness and fecklessness.' The third mistake, Curtis said, was providing the Taliban with everything it wanted without having to concede anything. Trump's Doha strategy forced the Afghan government to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners who returned to the ranks of the Taliban to mete out more violence in the war-torn nation. One of those released prisoners had killed three Australian soldiers. The Australian prime minister pleaded with Trump not to force the Afghan government to free him. Trump ignored his request. Trump's negotiators claimed success in getting the Taliban to agree to break ties with al-Qaida, but Curtis calls it a flimsy pledge with weak and meaningless language. She claims Trump and Biden underestimated the degree to which the Doha agreement had weakened the Afghan state and divided the Afghan political elite. When Biden took office in 2021, Curtis says he could have changed the course of the peace talks but instead chose to stick with the agreement poorly negotiated by Trump. Biden's performance is left to historians to judge, but Trump's incompetence in negotiating with the Taliban presages how he might end Russia's war against Ukraine. Based on Trump's failure in Afghanistan, let's hope he is on the golf course at Mar-A-Lago during the negotiations where the only harm he can do is to a golf ball. ____ Bob Kustra served two terms as Republican lieutenant governor of Illinois and 10 years as a state legislator. He is now host of 'Readers Corner' on Boise State Public Radio and a regular columnist for the Idaho Statesman. _____
Express Tribune
13-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
PM urges Taliban govt to curb terror groups, stop use of Afghan soil for attacks
Listen to article Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has urged the Afghan interim government to immediately rein in terrorist organisrations and ensure that Afghan soil is not used for any form of terrorism, Express News reported on Sunday. According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office in Islamabad, PM Shehbaz spoke to journalists in London, sharing that his recent visit to Belarus was fruitful. The PM noted that Pakistan is blessed with vast mineral resources and that he visited a factory in Belarus that manufactures mining equipment. He expressed hope for enhanced cooperation in this sector as well. He announced that an understanding has been reached with Belarus to provide employment opportunities for 150,000 skilled Pakistani youth, stating that the selection process will be conducted purely on merit. On Afghanistan, the PM reiterated that it is a neighbouring and brotherly country, and that both nations must strive to live as good neighbors rather than fueling conflict. He said Pakistan has repeatedly conveyed to the Afghan interim government that, as per the Doha Agreement, Afghan soil must not be used for terrorist activities. Unfortunately, he added, groups like TTP, ISKP, and others continue to operate from Afghanistan and have carried out deadly attacks on innocent Pakistanis. He emphasised that the sacrifices made by Pakistan's citizens, armed forces, police, and other law enforcement agencies in the fight against terrorism will not go in vain. Offering sincere advice to the Afghan leadership, he urged them to act swiftly against these terrorist groups and ensure that Afghanistan is not used as a base for attacks on others. Regarding the overseas convention, the PM said it has officially begun and is a major and historic event. He welcomed overseas Pakistanis back home, praising their contributions to the country. He noted that they work tirelessly to uplift Pakistan's global image and send billions of dollars in remittances each year. PM Shehbaz also shared that remittances from overseas Pakistanis have significantly increased this year. He said the convention presents an excellent opportunity to engage with them, listen to their legitimate demands, and respond promptly wherever possible.
The National
20-03-2025
- Politics
- The National
Taliban frees US citizen after talks in Kabul
The Taliban on Thursday freed an American citizen who had been detained in Afghanistan for more than two years, following talks in Kabul, the State Department said. George Glezmann was taken into Taliban custody in 2022 while visiting Kabul as a tourist. The State Department credited Qatar with being 'instrumental' in his release. 'George's release is a positive and constructive step,' the State Department said in a statement. 'It is also a reminder that other Americans are still detained in Afghanistan. President [Donald] Trump will continue his tireless work to free all Americans unjustly detained around the world.' Mr Glezmann follows Americans Ryan Corbett and William McKenty, who were released from Afghanistan in January. A Taliban spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on X a series of photos showing Amir Khan Muttaqi, the group's Foreign Minister, meeting Washington's special envoy for hostages Adam Boehler and former US envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad in Kabul. 'The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the country welcomed the delegation and described their arrival in Kabul as a good development in bilateral relations,' the post stated, adding that prisoner release was discussed during the meetings. 'The Foreign Minister added that it is important that Afghanistan and the United States are able to resolve issues through dialogue … that both countries need to overcome the effects of the 20-year war and engage in political dialogue with each other.' The US and the Taliban do not have diplomatic relations, and direct meetings between delegations from the two countries have been rare – and typically held in Qatar. But Mr Boehler is no stranger to breaking with diplomatic tradition when it comes to hostage release. Mr Trump has previously praised him as having 'negotiated with some of the toughest people in the world, including the Taliban'. He also met directly with officials from Hamas in recent weeks in an attempt to secure the release of American hostages, causing outcry in the Israeli government. Mr Khalilzad was part of Mr Trump's first administration and was responsible for dealing directly with the Taliban. He was instrumental in forging the Doha Agreement between the US and the Taliban in 2020, which kick-started what ultimately became a chaotic withdrawal of American forces. Mr Khalilzad became the focus of congressional anger early last year, with politicians accusing him of giving up US leverage in the 2020 deal.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine's path to obscurity
Feb. 19 (UPI) -- This week's meetings in Saudi Arabia between the United States and Russia began with a goal of ending or resolving the three-year war in Ukraine. President Donald Trump is exactly correct. The fighting in which hundreds of thousands have been killed and Ukraine laid to waste must stop. But this should have Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky very worried. Ukraine has not been included, just like a wake that lacked a corpse. The administration argues that Ukraine is involved. The presidents have talked. And a dual and separate track has begun in which the United States is the go-between in talks with Russia and Ukraine. Still, Zelensky should not be happy. President John Kennedy explained why. Kennedy tartly observed that the only thing worse than being an enemy of the United States is being a friend. He was correct. In 1956, the United States and the USSR forced the United Kingdom, France and Israel to withdraw from the Suez Canal after initiating the war. Six years later, the U.K. was abandoned by the United States. The United States' closest ally, and part of the special relationship, had based a substantial amount of its nuclear deterrent capability on an air-launched ICBM called Skybolt. Because the technology was not up to the task, the United States quickly canceled the program, causing quite a strain in the special relationship. When President Richard Nixon entered office in 1969, he put in place the Paris Peace talks with North Vietnam to end the war. The talks, negotiated by National Security Adviser and later Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, ultimately led to an agreement. South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu was forced to accept the terms. The Nixon administration had imposed a "Vietnamization" on the Army of Vietnam to assume responsibility for its own defense against the north, hoping it would work after the United States withdrew. Congress cancelled the funding. Thieu was gone. And the scene of the disastrous U.S. evacuation from the U.S. Embassy in Saigon was a tragic pictorial of a war gone bad. The Trump administration intended to end America's longest war in Afghanistan. In 2019, it entered into the Doha Agreement with the Taliban. The United States would withdraw by April 2020. The Taliban would provide the security. And guess who did not come to dinner -- Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. The Biden administration took office in January 2020 and debated about Afghanistan. Despite the Joint Chiefs of Staff recommending retaining 2,500 troops at Bagram Air Base outside Kabul, Biden chose a complete withdrawal, extending the date to August. But like Thieu, Afghani President Ashraf Ghani played no part in negotiating away his country. The withdrawal was a debacle. Thirteen U.S. service personnel were killed in a terrorist attack. Images of panicked Afghans trying to force themselves aboard the landing wheel compartments of U.S. air transports filled TV, computer and smartphone screens. Ghani and his administration had fled the country earlier, leaving Afghanistan without a government. Despite forecasts that Kabul would hold out for months, everything collapsed. The Taliban took over just as quickly as it fell after the U.S. 2003 intervention. The talks have a long way to go. Ukraine cannot survive without foreign support. But if European states who are members of NATO deploy troops to Ukraine and conflict breaks out, will Article 5 -- an attack against one shall be considered an attack against all -- be invoked, committing the alliance, including the United States, to war? This question is one of many profound and perplexing quandaries that must be addressed if an agreement is to be reached in Afghanistan. Zelensky, like Thieu, will be given a fait accompli. His only leverage is the threat to fight on, no matter. In that case, the outcome seems predictable. Russia will win. Perhaps shuttle diplomacy will work. Separating the two combatants may be the only way to conduct the negotiation. Still, will Zelensky's and Ukrainian interests be preserved? Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth's remarks at the Munich Security Conference last week were called a "rookie mistake" by U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., tipping the administration's hand. Ukraine would not join NATO or regain its pre-2014 borders before Russia occupied Crimea. While the White House tried to modify the remarks, it did not. Ukraine must see how this could turn out. The Vietnam and Doha talks are important indicators. If Trump really wants to end the war, he can -- at Ukraine's expense. And if the talks move to Paris, Zelensky needs plans A, B, C, D and so on. Harlan Ullman is UPI's Arnaud deBorchgrave Distinguished Columnist, senior adviser at Washington's Atlantic Council, chairman of two private companies and principal author of the doctrine of shock and awe. His next book, co-written with General The Lord David Richards, former U.K. Chief of Defense and due out late next year, is The Arc of Failure: Can Strategic Thinking Transform a Dangerous World. The writer can be reached on Twitter @harlankullman.
Asharq Al-Awsat
13-02-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Liberation and Justice!
"Liberation and Justice" is a hypothetical title for the ministerial statement of Lebanon's "reform and rescue" government. Nawaf Salam's appointment as prime minister, following the election of President Joseph Aoun, was seen as a positive surprise by the public. This shock soon gave rise to immense optimism about the formation of the new president's first government. Its prime minister revived the principles of the Taif Agreement and the constitution in forming the government, breaking with the Doha Agreement's ad hoc conventions: the "blocking third" under the pretext of "sectarian balance". He largely succeeded in appointing non-partisan ministers, favoring so-called "competent figures", and presenting a government that does not resemble any of the governments that have been formed since the Taif Agreement and have taken us to rock bottom. As a result, this government almost looks like a normal government in a functional country. Despite the significant political shift that led to his appointment (largely propelled by the winds of the October Revolution), the government has a notable flaw: none of the "October" youths are represented, although they have vast capabilities and expertise. Their exclusion could have been avoided, as most cabinet members were imposed by Salam. Ignoring these October activists thus marks an extension of the policy of sidelining elites who had played a pivotal role in exposing the corrupt system, forcing it into the defensive, and bringing Salam to the fore as the October-endorsed candidate to lead a government of hope and change. The serious October forces, despite recognizing this flaw in the reform and rescue government, are developing their organizational structures to build a strong popular bloc that pushes for change. This bloc seeks to present the Lebanese with a program that underpins their campaign in the spring 2026 general elections, in which they will nominate candidates for every seat in Lebanon's 128-member parliament. That said, this effort will not prevent them from engaging selectively with the government, which includes many figures who share the October movement's vision. As the country awaits the ministerial statement, a broad set of challenges and pressing tasks loom. Full liberation is at the heart of this challenge- success is pivotal to reclaiming the hijacked state. Achieving this objective demands a firm approach to securing a permanent ceasefire, the enforcement of Israel's unconditional withdrawal, and implementing UN Resolution 1701 within a short time frame. It also entails ensuring that only legitimate state forces have the right to bear arms, as well as the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces along the southern, eastern, and northern borders. It is clear that the international community will not provide aid- whether for reconstruction or economic recovery- if those goals are not achieved. The first step is putting an end to Hezbollah's narrative of both the ceasefire agreement and the UN resolution. Disregarding the fact that the resolution applies to all of Lebanon, starting with the south, is unacceptable. The government must also remain vigilant and stand against any attempts by Hezbollah to compensate for its military losses. The era of illegal arms has ended. Hezbollah has lost its legitimacy and can no longer override the constitution, national interests, and the will of the people. It has lost the war, and with it, every justification it has used to defend its arsenal- justifications that were never valid in the first place. What was once described as a deterrence force has instead led to the country's destruction and drawn occupation of our territory. Even within Hezbollah's own base, that militarization is futile. With Iranian influence waning in Syria, its grip on Lebanon must also come to a definitive end. As for ensuring justice, it is the ultimate test- the standard by which everything else will be measured. Trust in the government will either be solidified or completely evaporate depending on this issue. Justice must begin with an independent judiciary capable of delivering accountability for Beirut, the victims of the port explosion, and those wounded during the revolution. This must be a binding commitment. Moreover, justice for the Lebanese people, who have suffered immensely, must be non-negotiable. Their deliberate impoverishment and the judiciary's subjugation by politicians have deprived citizens of their basic rights and left tens of thousands of families living in destitution. The major challenge in ensuring justice is formulating a fiscal reform plan that breaks with the policies of the past five years, which have placed the burden of the crisis on the most vulnerable segments of society while completely disregarding the people's economic hardships. It must be emphasized that without a just resolution to the deliberate crisis of deposits, the government cannot be one of "rescue and reform." If it fails to act, it risks losing the trust of the public, and Lebanon risks failing to restore confidence in its banking sector, which needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. Without a functioning banking system, we cannot have a productive economy, and consequently: we would not create employment opportunities, grow our economy, or prosper. Nawaf Salam's government, which is supposed to lay the foundations of a new era, faces another challenge. Beyond the critical issue of the Ministry of Finance and its implications, there is mounting apprehension that the government could be gridlocked by the 10 cabinet members who are either board members of banks or legal representatives of banks. Was Judge Nawaf Salam given assurances that the cabinet he has assembled will adhere to the long-disregarded principle of justice in Lebanon? This is a country where immunity, special courts, and laws ensuring impunity have long shielded the powerful. Will this government truly break that cycle, or will it fall into familiar patterns?
