Biden admin to review Taliban deal: Blinken

KABUL (Pajhwok): Secretary of State-designate Antony Blinken says the Joe Biden administration will review the peace agreement with the Taliban.

The BBC quoted Blinken as saying the new US government would undertake a review of the agreement signed in February 2020.

At his confirmation hearing, Biden’s pick for the secretary of state told lawmakers: “We want to end this so-called forever war. We want to bring our forces home. We want to retain some capacity to deal with any resurgence of terrorism, which is what brought us there in the first place.”

Blinken added: “We have to look carefully at what has actually been negotiated. I have not been privy to it yet.” He vowed to consider the rights of women and girls.

On peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan government, he said: “I do not believe that any outcome that they might achieve is sustainable without protecting the gains that have been made by women and girls in Afghanistan over the last 20 years.”

“We must thoroughly assess the US-Taliban peace agreement, I still do not know the details of this agreement,” he added.

Under the agreement, all American forces must withdraw from Afghanistan by May 2021. The Taliban have promised not to let insurgents use Afghanistan’s soil.

Taliban stopped attacking the US forces in Afghanistan but continued targeting the Afghan security personnel.

On the other hand, the Afghan government is negotiating with the Taliban in Doha. Both sides are suffering casualties on a daily basis.

Meanwhile, the Taliban warned if the US would not withdraw its forces within spring this year as agreed upon in the US-Taliban agreement then the Taliban would resume attacking the US forces.

President-elect Biden has been supporting a US withdrawal from Afghanistan but his advisors say some troops must stay in Afghanistan to fight terrorism in the country.

hr/mud

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