Afghan President Confirms United States is in Peace Talks with Taliban - Polidicks

[release]The US is engaged in talks with the Taliban, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said, in the first high-level confirmation of US involvement. Mr Karzai said that "foreign military and especially the US itself" were involved in peace talks with the group. Shortly afterwards, gunmen reportedly attacked a Kabul police station. Earlier this month, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said there could be political talks with the Taliban by the end of this year. The US is due to start withdrawing its 97,000 troops from Afghanistan in July. It aims to gradually hand over all security operations to Afghan security forces by 2014. "In the course of this year, there have been peace talks with the Taliban and our own countrymen," Mr Karzai told a Kabul news conference on Saturday. "Peace talks have started with them already and it is going well. Foreign militaries, especially the United States of America, are going ahead with these negotiations." He gave no details as to whether the discussions involved Taliban officials with US authorities, or a go-between. Shortly after the announcement, gunmen reportedly attacked a police station near the financial ministry in the Afghan capital. Afghanistan's Tolo TV quoted a police official as saying that two suicide bombers had blown themselves up outside the police station, and a third insurgent was continuing to shoot in the area. The official Taliban position is that international forces must leave Afghanistan before it will get involved in peace talks, and then only with the Afghan government. Diplomats have previously spoken of preliminary talks being held by both sides in the continuing conflict. On Friday, the UN split a sanctions blacklist for the Taliban and al-Qaeda, to encourage the Taliban to join reconciliation efforts. Before now, both organisations have been handled by the same UN sanctions committee. The UN Security Council said it was sending a signal to the Taliban that now is the time to join the political process. The US Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, said in a statement that the move sent "a clear message to the Taliban that there is a future for those who separate from al-Qaeda, renounce violence and abide by the Afghan constitution". The Taliban ruled Afghanistan before being driven from power by US-backed forces in 2001. It had sheltered al-Qaeda and its leader Osama Bin Laden.[/release] [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-13821452[/url] I guess it's good that they really are making efforts to end the military presence in Afghanistan, shame though that they couldn't have more substantially won against such a horrible organisation.

I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.

[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;30537156]I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.[/QUOTE] I guess they're not as strong as they once were.

[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;30537156]I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.[/QUOTE] Or perhaps this is the first time America has tried saying anything instead of just bombing?

It's about damn time that both sides tried to use diplomacy.

Unless the Taliban has made an ideological 180, I don't see this going anywhere.

This should have been done a decade ago. A lot of things should have been done a decade ago. It's about time we just up and told them "Whatever happens over here is none of our business." It's a shitty region but mucking around in it clearly doesn't do any good for either side, if those people want to make a better life they need to take it for themselves. Tunisia, Egypt and Libya are giving it a shot, so can Afghanistan and Iraq if they wanted to.

[QUOTE=croguy;30537232]It's about damn time that both sides tried to use diplomacy.[/QUOTE] I don't think anybody would have thought the Taliban were the kind of organization to utilize diplomacy and peace talks. hell I don't think a lot of people will believe this. I'm having trouble even.

[QUOTE=Mingebox;30537332]Unless the Taliban has made an ideological 180, I don't see this going anywhere.[/QUOTE] They do have less radical elements than they used to.

[QUOTE=NoDachi;30537412]They do have less radical elements than they used to.[/QUOTE] I hope it's a lot less, because they were extreme even by Middle East standards.

I bet this wont work. Just pulling out wont help because before we intervened they were an oppressive force in that region and they WILL try and assume control again. Who is to say that once the US leaves that the Taliban will disband and give control over to the Afghan police? No peace talks could guarantee such a situation. This reminds me of Vietnam. [QUOTE=NoDachi;30537412]They do have less radical elements than they used to.[/QUOTE] So using children to fight, using dead bodies as bombs, blowing up their own people just to get rid of another Foreign power? Plus SO much more horrors these people do just to get what they want. Yeah, less radical elements my ass.

[QUOTE=Mingebox;30537332]Unless the Taliban has made an ideological 180, I don't see this going anywhere.[/QUOTE] Maybe, but I hope at least they can find a middle ground that will result in less death and injury.

[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;30537156]I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.[/QUOTE] I'm not. The Taliban and their predecessors have fought against shitloads of attempts to invade Afghanistan; Russia once, Britain 3 times now. I'm sure they'd like any opportunity they can get to end the violence. They see the Western coalition as illicit invaders and occupiers. If you empathise with them and imagine what you'd do if you were in a country that was already in shit-state, and then men in armour and tanks suddenly appear to take it over, what would you do? You'd resist, or at least not like it, whatever their motive. And the history of the country further lends to their will to fight. That said, I only sympathise with the Taliban/Afghan Insurgents in that respect. Their ideology is pretty backwards [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=Mr. Sun;30537476]I bet this wont work. Just pulling out wont help because before we intervened they were an oppressive force in that region and they WILL try and assume control again. Who is to say that once the US leaves that the Taliban will disband and give control over to the Afghan police? No peace talks could guarantee such a situation. This reminds me of Vietnam. So using children to fight, using dead bodies as bombs, blowing up their own people just to get rid of another Foreign power? Plus SO much more horrors these people do just to get what they want. Yeah, less radical elements my ass.[/QUOTE] In fairness said children are probably of the same mindset, either from indoctrination or by what they've seen themselves. We can't deny that the Coalition has caused civilian casualties, and that's another thing that would piss them off. Invasion will always cause the indigenous population to resist. It's almost never completely peaceful.

What I'm afraid is if the US leave, the current government might crumble like the previous government.

[QUOTE=Mr. Sun;30537476] This reminds me of Vietnam. [/QUOTE] Sorry I hate it when people say this. It shares similarities of course, but Vietnam was a completely different situation and the reasoning for the response (domino theory) was almost laughably ridiculous. North Vietnam wasn't some oppressive extremist group intent on ruling through fear and subjugation simply for the sake of being in control either.

America should stop playing world-cop. There are people exactly like the Taliban (if not worse) in many other places in the world. They should just get out.

[QUOTE=The Epidemic;30542024]America should stop playing world-cop. There are people exactly like the Taliban (if not worse) in many other places in the world. They should just get out.[/QUOTE] This would've been the obvious solution 9 years ago or so, but if they pull out now, it makes the past 10 years of bloodshed completely for nothing, and the Taliban move back into power violently because the ANA still aren't capable of handling their domestic problems. They are getting there slowly however.

[QUOTE=JaegerMonster;30542190]This would've been the obvious solution 9 years ago or so, but if they pull out now, it makes the past 10 years of bloodshed completely for nothing, and the Taliban move back into power violently because the ANA still aren't capable of handling their domestic problems. They are getting there slowly however.[/QUOTE] You can't "fight" a group like the Taliban. They'll just keep coming and coming - USA is wasting exorbitant amounts of money into absolutely nothing and if their goal is to really 'eradicate the Taliban' then they're going to fail horribly. How much money have they spent into this war so far? Do you think it was worth whatever little [I]progress[/I] they made?

[QUOTE=Mr. Sun;30537476] This reminds me of Vietnam. [/QUOTE] More like the Soviet-Afghan War.

[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;30537156]I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.[/QUOTE] its all a trap, they are going to ask to see obama himself and kill him

[QUOTE=The Epidemic;30542268]You can't "fight" a group like the Taliban. They'll just keep coming and coming - USA is wasting exorbitant amounts of money into absolutely nothing and if their goal is to really 'eradicate the Taliban' then they're going to fail horribly. How much money have they spent into this war so far? Do you think it was worth whatever little [I]progress[/I] they made?[/QUOTE] But their goal is not to eradicate the Taliban, they know this is not possible via conventional means. Their goal at the moment, at least the goal of the US Military, is to get the ANA up to operational capability while providing reconstruction work so they can deal with the situation themselves.

Good. The real problem in Afghanistan is bad governance rather than the Taliban. The Karzai government has lost the confidence of much of the people. Doing super elite special forces raids/assassinations won't "win" this War On Terror. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=TrouserDemon;30537137]I guess it's good that they really are making efforts to end the military presence in Afghanistan, shame though that they couldn't have more substantially won against such a horrible organisation.[/quote] We had to to reassure ourselves we were facing an "inferior" enemy who "made things up", rather than an opponent who utilized a technology for which we were not prepared. (In this case IEDs) We have seriously overstated the effectiveness of Western armed forces. Remember when the British were defeated by Americans who used tactics and fought in terrain that definitely weren't for set-piece tight formation engagements? Rabble, the British called the Colonials. When you don't understand something, it's comforting to give them a demeaning name just to assure yourself you're "better" than them.

I guess with Bin Laden out of the picture things are finally starting to look brighter. I suppose he was the one who didn't want to do with any diplomacy, with their new leader however..

[QUOTE=Zeke129;30537222]Or perhaps this is the first time America has tried saying anything instead of just bombing?[/QUOTE] Hell no, blow shit up is always the way to diplomacy. [HIGHLIGHT]2000 POUND DIMPLOMACY!!![/highlight] Anyvey, this is going to not end up good.

[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;30537156]I'm more surprised that the Taliban are actually willing to listen to anything we have to say.[/QUOTE] I'm surprised we are actually listening to what the Taliban are saying. Nobody even listened to what Osama Bin Laden was saying, and he was very clear about why he didn't like the US. The Taliban have made it clear why they don't like the US and other invading forces. Why is it that we believe motivation doesn't matter when it comes to terrorism and forces that oppose us?

[QUOTE=VaSTinY;30544731]I guess with Bin Laden out of the picture things are finally starting to look brighter. I suppose he was the one who didn't want to do with any diplomacy, with their new leader however..[/QUOTE] Bin Laden was the leader of Al Qaeda, Not the Taliban.

Since when did we start negotiating with terrorists?

Doubt it's gonna be different from the last negotiation last year, up until now all negotiations will the Taliban failed because the Taliban have demands like getting rid of the Afghan Constitution. I don't think this will be different.

[QUOTE=Ignhelper;30541446]What I'm afraid is if the US leave, the current government might crumble like the previous government.[/QUOTE] who cares? let the government crumble, and let a society be reborn and reconstructed on their own terms, without western interference. the west doesn't intervene for the sake of helping restore democracy, we do it so that we are the founders and operators of new democracies. let the people create their own destiny and become sovereign countries that they don't need to answer to our beckon call. [editline]18th June 2011[/editline] [QUOTE=CabooseRvB;30546844]Since when did we start negotiating with terrorists?[/QUOTE] since we realized that you cant win a war against guerilla fighters whose motivation for fighting is your very presence? its been 10 years, america needs to admit they failed and stop swiping furiously at the middle east in an attempt to redeem 10 years of failure

The Taliban are just going to take over when the US leaves.