Afghanistan's Abdullah Says Atmosphere At Intra-Afghan Peace Talks In Doha 'Healthy'

The atmosphere of the talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in the Qatari capital of Doha is "healthy," High Council for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan Chairman Abdullah Abdullah said on Tuesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2020) The atmosphere of the talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in the Qatari capital of Doha is "healthy," High Council for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan Chairman Abdullah Abdullah said on Tuesday.

"I should say that after 42 years of war, the start of talks in Doha I consider historic," Abdullah said. "It has started well. It continues now as we are speaking. The contact groups are meeting one another and there will be a get together of the two teams, the whole team... The atmosphere considering the background I should consider it as healthy."

Abdullah pointed out there is a sense that willingness exists among the Taliban to take advantage of that situation and contribute.

The Afghan government and the Taliban launched peace talks in Doha earlier this month after both sides successfully completed a long-awaited prisoner exchange arrangement. There is no predetermined time frame for the peace negotiations, which are the first direct talks between the two warring sides.

On February 29, the United States and the Taliban movement signed a peace deal in Doha, stipulating a gradual withdrawal of US troops as well as the beginning of intra-Afghan negotiations and prisoner exchanges. The talks were delayed multiple times as the Afghan government and the Taliban disagreed over the prisoner exchange process.