Third Doha Meeting Repetition of Failed Bonn Experience, Says Hezb-e Islami Leader
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of Hezb-e Islami party of Afghanistan, called the third Doha meeting a "repetition of the failed Bonn experience”.
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of Hezb-e Islami party of Afghanistan, called the third Doha meeting a "repetition of the failed Bonn experience”.
Hekmatyar said that the goal of this meeting is to appoint another Lakhdar Brahimi and Benon Sevan to create consensus among the countries involved in Afghan affairs.
He claimed that the new UN special representative for Afghanistan will be someone approved by the United States.
Benon Sevan and Lakhdar Brahimi were special representatives of the UN Secretary-General for Afghanistan during the transition from the first Taliban government to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
These two prominent UN diplomats played significant roles in the Bonn Conference and the political developments in Afghanistan in 2001 and thereafter.
The Bonn Conference refers to more than a week of discussions in December 2001 between Afghan politicians and representatives from regional and global countries in Bonn, Germany. Participants of the Bonn Conference signed a two-phase agreement that laid the foundation for the creation of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban regime.
The Taliban and Hezb-e Islami, led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, did not play an influential role in the Bonn Conference.
The third Doha meeting, with the presence of special representatives of countries for Afghanistan, is scheduled for June 30 and July 1.
The United Nations has stated that the goal of this meeting is to increase international engagement with Afghanistan in a "coherent and structured" manner.
Taliban officials previously told Afghanistan International that the group has set six conditions for participating in the third Doha meeting.
According to these sources, one of the conditions is to grant Afghanistan's seat at the UN to the Taliban.
Taliban sources, who wished to remain anonymous, told Afghanistan International that the second condition is the UN withdrawing its special representative for Afghanistan.
The third condition is consulting the Taliban on the agenda and composition of the third Doha meeting.
A diplomatic source also told Afghanistan International that the Taliban strongly opposes the participation of representatives from Afghan civil society and political groups in the third Doha meeting.
According to sources within the Taliban, the group also informed the UN and Qatari delegations in Kabul that issues such as girls' education, women's employment, and the formation of an inclusive government should not be on the agenda for the third Doha meeting.
