The Taliban has blamed two leaders—Ahmad Massoud and former Afghan Vice President Amrullah Saleh, for the stalemate in talks with the Afghan resistance, radiating from the famed Panjshir valley.
"There are only two persons there who want a war. They are [Afghanistan’s Vice President Amrullah Saleh and [resistance leader Ahmad] Massoud. We have no problems with them. We have repeatedly said that we want to settle this issue peacefully, through talks,” said Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
In an interview with Russia’s Rossiya-1 television channel, Mujahid said that the group was ready for lengthy talks, as the Taliban would be negotiating from a position of strength
“If they (the Panshiris) don’t accept our peace proposals in the long run, it will not be a problem for us. We are now able to take Panjshir," he observed.
Also read: Guns fall silent for now in Panjshir as talks with Taliban begin
India Narrative had earlier reported that Anti-Taliban force, the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, led by Massoud is sending its envoy to Washington to meet US President Joe Biden and key members of his administration including the CIA chief.
“We need arms, munitions to continue the fight against terrorism”, Ali Maisam Nazary, head of foreign relations for the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan told British newspaper DailyMail.com.
“We are asking for arms and support from the US President. For us it is very difficult to sustain a safe zone without humanitarian support. We need the US, European Union, United Nations, anyone,” says Nazary, who is expected to visit the US next week.
Also Read: Mr President, give us arms to fight the Taliban, Northern Alliance requests Biden
Nevertheless, the two groups—Taliban and the Panjshiris– held their first direct talks on Wednesday and Thursday. The dialogue was held in Charikar, the capital of Parwan province, neighbouring Panjshir.
“After three hours of discussion, it was decided that both delegations will share the message with their leadership and resume the negotiations to reach a durable peace in the country. It was also decided that the parties should not attack each other until the second round of negotiations”, Mohammad Alam Ezedyar, a representative of the resistance front told the Tolo news.
"There were some of the former ministers, some of the former MPs (members of parliament), not only from Panjshir, but from other provinces, too," Fahim Dashty, who is working closely in Panjshir with Ahmad Massoud, was quoted as saying by the news channel.
The Panjshir resistance has apparently made it clear that the future government of the country will have to be an inclusive one where there will be equal rights for the women and minorities. As of now the Taliban want the Panjshir valley to show the white flag as a precondition for open-ended talks.
