"We welcome the Afghan Loya Jirga’s declaration and President [Ashraf] Ghani’s decision to sign the decree ordering the release of the remaining prisoners … In the next few days, we expect the completion of prisoner releases, then travel of the Islamic Republic team to Doha, & from there the immediate start of intra-Afghan negotiations", Khalilzad tweeted late on Sunday.
1/6 We welcome the Afghan Loya Jirga’s declaration and President Ghani’s decision to sign the decree ordering the release of the remaining prisoners.
— U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad (@US4AfghanPeace) August 9, 2020
3/6 In the next few days, we expect the completion of prisoner releases, then travel of the Islamic Republic team to Doha, & from there the immediate start of intra-Afghan negotiations.
— U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad (@US4AfghanPeace) August 9, 2020
According to the US envoy, "a historic opportunity for peace" in the war-stricken country has emerged.
"The parties will embark on a process to reach an agreement on a political roadmap & a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire to end the Afghan war", the diplomat said.
The United States "seeks a sovereign, unified, and democratic Afghanistan" that will not pose a threat to the world, and the prisoner release will bring everyone "one step closer" to this goal, Zalmay Khalilzad added.
On Sunday, the Loya Jirga, a council of Afghan tribal leaders, passed a resolution to green-light the release of the remaining Taliban captives in a bid to kick-start the long-awaited peace talks.
The prisoner release is a part of the US-Taliban February deal. While setting free most of the 5,000 militants on the list, the Afghan government held the 400 in question, arguing that their crimes were too serious. The radical movement, on its part, claims to have freed all the 1,000 government prisoners.
