Women to Participate in Talks With Taliban - Afghan President

14:11 GMT, 2 March 2018

Last month, media reports appeared, saying that Kabul was engaging in secret talks with the Taliban, wishing to put an end to the group's insurgency, which has lasted for 17 years since the US overthrew the then-ruling movement in 2001.

Sputnik

Women will become full-fledged members of the upcoming peace process with the Taliban movement, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Friday, as quoted by CNN.

"Our women hold senior governmental posts; we have ten female deputy ministers, five female ambassadors and three ministers. Their activity is growing. They will participate in all aspects of the peaceful settlement," Ghani said in an interview with CNN.

According to CNN, such an initiative could endanger the peace initiative, as the Taliban doesn't recognize gender equality and can react negatively to women's participation in the process.

Earlier this week, the TOLO news broadcaster reported that Ghani offered to recognize the Taliban movement as a political group in order to involve it in the peace process in the conflict-torn country.

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Kabul will reportedly exert efforts to work on a list of Taliban prisoners for potential release, to provide the members of the groups and the members of their families with passports and to remove sanctions imposed on the leaders of the movement.

Afghanistan has long suffered from political, social and security-related instability because of simmering insurgencies, including by the Taliban and Daesh.