International Business

1. Peace in Afghanistan

2. Peace in Afghanistan
 Introduction
 , 2020On February 29, the U.S. signed a conditional
peace agreement with the Taliban, which calls for the
withdrawal of foreign troops in 14 months if the Taliban
uphold the terms of the agreement
 President Trump said it had been a "long and hard
journey" in Afghanistan. "It's time after all these years
to bring our people back home," he said.

3. Peace in Afghanistan
 On March 1, 2020, however, the Afghan government, which was not a
party to the deal, rejected the U.S. and Taliban's call for a prisoner swap
by March 10, 2020, with President Ghani stating that such an agreement
will require further negotiation and will also not be implemented as a
precondition for future peace negotiations.

 Under the agreement, the militants also agreed not to allow al-Qaeda or
any other extremist group to operate in the areas they control.

 Speaking at the White House, Mr Trump said the Taliban had been
trying to reach an agreement with the US for a long time.

4. Peace in Afghanistan
 He said US troops had been killing terrorists in Afghanistan "by the thousands" and now it
was "time for someone else to do that work and it will be the Taliban and it could be
surrounding countries".
 "I really believe the Taliban wants to do something to show we're not all wasting time," Mr
 Trump added. "If bad things happen, we'll go back with a force like no-one's ever seen."
 The US invaded Afghanistan weeks after the September 2001 attacks in New York by the
 Afghanistan-based al-Qaeda group.
 More than 2,400 US troops have been killed during the conflict. About 12,000 are still
stationed in the country. President Trump has promised to put an end to the conflict.

5. Peace in Afghanistan
 On March 10, 2020, Ghani signed a decree agreeing to swap 1,500
Taliban prisoners starting March 14, 2020, but on the condition that
they sign pledges agreeing to not return to combat.
 The same day, it was also revealed that there were no plans for a full
U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
 On March 10, the United Nations Security Council unanimously
backed the U.S.-Taliban peace deal. On March 11, 2020, however, the
Taliban rejected Ghani's prisoner swap proposal.
 On March 14, 2020 the U.S.-Taliban peace deal became endangered
when Ghani delayed the release of Taliban prisoners

6. Peace in Afghanistan
 What happened in Doha?
 The deal was signed by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban
political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar with US Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo as a witness.
 In a speech, Mr Pompeo urged the militant group to "keep your
promises to cut ties with al- Qaeda".

 Mr Baradar said he hoped Afghanistan could now emerge from four
decades of conflict.
 "I hope that with the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan the
Afghan nation under an Islamic regime will take its relief and embark on
a new prosperous life," he said.

7. Peace in Afghanistan
 Meanwhile US Defence Secretary Mark Esper was in the Afghan capital
Kabul alongside
 Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani - whose government did not take
part in the US-Taliban talks.
 Meanwhile US Defence Secretary Mark Esper was in the Afghan capital
Kabul alongside Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani - whose
government did not take part in the US-Taliban talks.
 Mr Ghani said the country was "looking forward to a full ceasefire". The
government said it was ready to negotiate with the Taliban.

8. Peace in Afghanistan
 What's in the agreement?
 Within the first 135 days of the deal the US will reduce its forces in
Afghanistan to 8,600, with allies also drawing down their forces
proportionately.
 The move would allow US President Donald Trump to show that he has
brought troops home ahead of the US presidential election in November.
 The deal also provides for a prisoner swap. Some 5,000 Taliban
prisoners and 1,000 Afghan security force prisoners would be
exchanged by 10 March, when talks between the Taliban and the
Afghan government are due to start.

9. Peace in Afghanistan
 The US will also lift sanctions against the Taliban and work with
the UN to lift its separate sanctions against the group.
 In Kabul, activist Zahra Husseini said she feared the deal could
worsen the situation for women in Afghanistan.
 "I don't trust the Taliban, and remember how they suppressed
women when they were ruling," the 28-year-old told AFP.
 "Today is a dark day, and as I was watching the deal being
signed, I had this bad feeling that it would result in their return
to power rather than in peace."

10. Peace in Afghanistan
 This historic deal has been years in the making, as all sides
kept seeking advantage on the battlefield.
 The agreement is born of America's determination to bring
troops home and a recognition, at least by some Taliban, that
talks are the best route to return to Kabul.
 It's a significant step forward, despite deep uncertainty and
scepticism over where it will lead.
 When the only alternative is unending war, many Afghans seem
ready to take this risk for peace.

11. Peace in Afghanistan
 Taliban leaders say they've changed since their harsh
rule of the 1990s still seared in the memory of many,
and most of all Afghan women.
 This process will test the Taliban, but also veteran
Afghan leaders of the past, and a new generation
which has come of age in the last two decades and is
hoping against hope for a different future.

12. Peace in Afghanistan
 What reaction has there been?
 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed "the importance of
sustaining the nationwide reduction in violence, for the benefit of all
Afghans"
 NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg: "We went in together in
2001, we are going to adjust [troop levels] together and when the time is
right, we are going to leave together, but we are only going to leave
when conditions are right"
 UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace: "I welcome this small but important
step towards the chance for Afghans to live in peace, free from
terrorism... We remain absolutely committed to building an Afghanistan
that is a strong partner for decades to come"

13. Peace in Afghanistan
 How did US-Taliban talks come about?
 Since 2011, Qatar has hosted Taliban leaders who have moved
there to discuss peace inAfghanistan. It has been a chequered
process. A Taliban office was opened in 2013, and closed
the same year amid rows over flags. Other attempts at talks
stalled.
 In December 2018, the militants announced they would meet
US officials to try to find a "roadmap to peace". But the hard-line
Islamist group continued to refuse to hold official talks with the
Afghan government, whom they dismissed as American
"puppets".

14. Peace in Afghanistan
 Following nine rounds of US-Taliban talks in Qatar, the two sides
seemed close to an agreement.
 Washington's top negotiator announced last September that the US
would withdraw 5,400 troops from Afghanistan within 20 weeks as part
of a deal agreed "in principle" with Taliban militants.
 Days later, Mr Trump said the talks were "dead", after the group killed a
US soldier. But within weeks the two sides resumed discussions behind
the scenes.
 A week ago the Taliban agreed to a "reduction of violence" - although
Afghan officials say at least 22 soldiers and 14 civilians have been killed
in Taliban attacks over that period.

15. Peace in Afghanistan
 What's the background to the Afghan war?
 It began when the US launched air strikes one month following
the 11 September 2001 attacks and after the Taliban had
refused to hand over the man behind them, Osama bin Laden.
 The US was joined by an international coalition and the Taliban
were quickly removed from power. However, they turned into an
insurgent force and continued deadly attacks, destabilising
subsequent Afghan governments.
 The international coalition ended its combat mission in 2014,
staying only to train Afghan

16. Peace in Afghanistan
 forces. But the US continued its own, scaled-back combat
operation, including air strikes.
 The Taliban has however continued to gain momentum and
in 2018 the BBC found they were active across 70% of
Afghanistan.
 Nearly 3,500 members of the international coalition forces
have died in Afghanistan since the 2001 invasion.

17. Peace in Afghanistan
 The figures for Afghan civilians, militants and
government forces are more difficult to quantify.
 In a February 2019 report, the UN said that more than
32,000 civilians had died.
 The Watson Institute at Brown University says
58,000 security personnel and 42,000 opposition
combatants have been killed.

18. Peace in Afghanistan
 Why has the war lasted so long?
 There are many reasons for this. But they include a combination of
fierce Taliban resistance,
 the limitations of Afghan forces and governance, and other countries'
reluctance to keep their troops for longer in Afghanistan.

 At times over the past 18 years, the Taliban have been on the back foot.
In late 2009, US President Barack Obama announced a troop "surge"
that saw the number of American soldiers in Afghanistan top 100,000.

 The surge helped drive the Taliban out of parts of southern Afghanistan,
but it was never destined to last for years.

19. Peace in Afghanistan
 According to reports, there are five main reasons the war is
still going on now. They include:
 A lack of political clarity since the invasion began, and questions
about the effectiveness of the US strategy over the past 18 years
 The fact each side is trying to break what has become a stalemate
- and that the Taliban
 An increase in violence by Islamic State militants in Afghanistan -
they've been behind some of the bloodiest attacks recently have
been trying maximise their leverage during peace negotiations

20. Peace in Afghanistan
 There's also the role played by Afghanistan's
neighbour, Pakistan.
 There's no question the Taliban have their roots in
Pakistan, and that they were able to regroup there
during the US invasion. But Pakistan has denied
helping or protecting them -even as the US demanded
it do more to fight militants.

21. Peace in Afghanistan
THE END

22. Peace in Afghanistan

23. Peace in Afghanistan

24. Peace in Afghanistan

25. Peace in Afghanistan

26. Peace in Afghanistan

27. Peace in Afghanistan