Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Kabul (BNA) NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday called on the Taliban to reduce violence to fully implement their agreement with the United States.
"The Taliban attacks are harmful. Therefore, we call on the Taliban to cease the attacks to fully implement the agreement between the United States and the Taliban and to reduce violence because that’s the only way towards a peaceful negotiated solution," Stoltenberg said addressing reporters at a press conference ahead of the meeting of NATO's defense ministers.
He welcomed the fact that the Afghan government has appointed an inclusive negotiating team.
"We urge all parties to fully respect the promise to reduce violence and make all their efforts to implement the agreement and to initiate the intra-Afghan negotiations," Stoltenberg said.
NATO commander in Afghanistan, Scott Miller, and US special representative Zalmay Khalilzad recently met with the Taliban leadership in Doha.
Stoltenberg welcomed it saying it was "to try to facilitate a peace process which is the only way to reach peaceful negotiated solution in Afghanistan."
Stoltenberg reiterated that NATO would continue to "stay committed to Afghanistan with financial support, with our Resolute Support mission, with training."
"We believe that the best way for us to support the peace process is to continue the support to the Afghans so that the Taliban understand that they will never win on the battlefield. They have to sit down at the negotiating table and make real compromises," Stoltenberg said.
Yarzada
