The Peace Agreement In Afghanistan Is Threatened To Fail Because Of The US-Taliban Attack

Afghanistan Territory (Marko Beljan / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The United States (US) military has defended itself about the attacks targeting Taliban fighters last week. The guerrilla group said Washington had violated the agreement.

Previously the Taliban carried out major attacks on the southern province of Helmand. The attack was carried out to seize the provincial capital.

The US military supporting Afghan security forces responded with air strikes. Taliban spokesman Qari Muhammad Yousuf Ahmadi mentioned the Doha agreement.

"American forces have violated the Doha agreement in various forms by carrying out excessive air strikes following new developments in Helmand," he said in a statement.

The US-Taliban agreement was signed in Doha. The agreement stipulates foreign troops to leave Afghanistan in exchange for guaranteed security. The guerrilla group also promised to sit down with the Afghan government to find a peaceful solution to decades of war.

Colonel Sonny Leggett, spokesman for US forces, denied that the attack violated the agreement. "The whole world has seen the Taliban's offensive operation in Helmand - an attack that injured and displaced thousands of innocent Afghan civilians," Leggett said on Twitter.

He repeated calls for "all sides" to reduce violence. US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, who met with the Taliban last week in Doha to agree to a "resetting" of their commitments, said violence was still too high.

"The allegations of baseless violations and inflammatory rhetoric do not advance peace," he said on Twitter on Monday, October 19.

Khalizad urged the agreement to be strictly adhered to on troop withdrawals and a gradual reduction in violence. While last week's heavy fighting in Helmand has died down, violence elsewhere continues.

Since Saturday, October 17, clashes between the Taliban and security forces in several districts in northeastern Badakhshan, including the capital, Faizabad, have killed at least four troops. Talks between the Taliban and Afghan government negotiators began in September in Doha.

However, the negotiation process moved slowly. Meanwhile, violence increased. Diplomats and officials from the countries concerned believe the violence will weaken the confidence needed to ensure the success of the negotiations.