Are Afghanistan's Peace Talks 'On Or Off'?

Voice of America: Afghanistan: Talks with Taliban to Be Held Soon

ISLAMABAD — A key Afghan minister insists that talks with the Taliban will happen very soon despite contradictory news reports and confusion on the issue.

Without naming the group, Hekmat Khalil Karzai, the deputy foreign minister, said his government has made strides in the effort to start a dialogue with what he termed “the violent opposition.”

“As we speak, the government is putting together an Afghan negotiating team and a venue is being decided on where to hold peace talks,” Karzai said.

He made the statement Monday in Kabul at a seminar organized by the Afghan Foreign Ministry’s Center for Strategic Studies and a Chinese government policy group, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

WNU Editor: These talks are not going to happen .... the Taliban have never shown any serious interest to negotiate with Kabul, and I expect this stance to continue.

More News On Afghan - Taliban Peace Talks

Afghan Peace Efforts Suffer Setback, Officials Say -- WSJ
No Signs of Peace Talks as Afghan Fighting Season Nears -- VOA
Exclusive: Secret meetings in Pakistan expose obstacles to Afghan peace talks -- Reuters
News Analysis: Spring offensive by the Taliban very likely, says Afghan analyst -- Xinhua
Afghan Peace Process: Marred By Short-Sightedness – Analysis -- Divya Kumar Soti, Eurasia Review

Afghanistan - Taliban Peace Talks And Negotiations Will Start In the Next Few Weeks

A general view of the Taliban Afghanistan Political Office in Doha.

Wall Street Journal: Taliban, Afghan Officials to Meet for Peace Talks

Afghan government officials set to meet Taliban representatives in coming weeks for face-to-face negotiations

Afghan government officials will meet representatives of the Taliban in the coming weeks for an initial round of peace talks, according to senior Afghan officials.

“There will be face-to-face negotiations in the next three to four weeks,” the senior Afghan official said. “The venue is not decided yet.”

Another senior Afghan official said the talks would be held publicly.

“We don’t want secret talks with the Taliban,” the official said.

Update #1: Pakistanis Try to Nudge Taliban Along the Path to Peace Talks With Kabul -- NYT
Update #2: Pakistan officials say Afghan Taliban signal readiness for peace talks -- Reuters
Update #3: Pakistan facilitating Afghan peace talks, Taliban deny -- Pakistan Today

WNU Editor: The U.S. and the Taliban may not officially announce that they are talking .... but the Afghans and the Pakistanis are clearly indicating to the world that peace talks and negotiations are going to happen.

Secret U.S. - Taliban Peace Talks In Qatar?

NBC: Afghan Taliban to Hold Direct Talks With U.S. in Qatar: Militant Sources

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Members of the Afghan Taliban were due to hold direct talks with American officials in Qatar on Thursday, two senior militants told NBC News.

The delegation is led by Tayyab Agha, a close aide of Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar, one of the sources told NBC News from Qatar. He added that it also includes five former Taliban commanders freed from Guantanamo Bay in a controversial exchange for American soldier Bowe Bergdahl in May 2014.

Update #1: Afghan Taliban Denies Any Peace Talks with US -- VOA
Update #2: White House denies U.S. scheduled to meet with Taliban on peace deal -- Reuters

WNU Editor: Everyone is denying that these peace talks are going to take place .... but the details of how this meeting was going to take place .... and how both sides quickly came out to deny these reports .... my gut is telling me that they are talking .... but the details on how they will be conducting their secret talks are only now being worked out.

Update #3: Taliban say delegation to meet US reps in Qatar for peace talks -- Stars and Stripes