The US peace envoy for Afghanistan�s peace, Zalmay Khalilzad in a tweet on Afghanistan�s Independence Day on Tuesday night said that a political agreement is the road to end war in the country.

"Afghans yearn for peace and soon Afghan-owned and Afghan-led negotiations should start, a historic and vital step," Khalilzad said.

"Afghan leaders from all sides will have to rise to the occasion, put their country first, learn from past mistakes and reach a political agreement," he said, adding that "That is the road to ending the war and a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire."

On Tuesday, NATO Resolute Support Commander Gen. Scott Miller called on all sides to reduce violence and move toward peace.

"(It�s a) very good time for all sides to consider reducing violence so the military forces of all sides can build the political paths toward peace," he said.

Miller also congratulated the Afghan people on their 101st Independence Day and reiterated his support for the security forces.

The US Department of State also issued a statement reiterating its commitment to the political settlement in Afghanistan.

"We honor the resilience and self-determination of the Afghan people, who have embarked on a new phase in their effort to end a 40-year war and live in peace, freedom, and prosperity. The United States remains committed to a political settlement that ends the conflict and ensures Afghanistan never again poses a threat to the United States and its allies," the US Department of State said.

"At this historic moment, as the Afghan people come together and attempt to broker a lasting peace, let us redouble our joint efforts in pursuit of a sovereign, unified, democratic, and self-reliant Afghanistan that is at peace with itself and which is a contributing member of the international community," the statement said.

However, on Monday President Ghani warned that a possible deal made by the international community on the fate of Afghans will be rejected by Kabul, and he pledged that the republic and the government forces will not be compromised in the peace process with the Taliban.

"We are not ready for compromise. If the world compromised on us, we will stand and will say no to the world," Ghani said.

On Monday evening, the AP quoted Sediq Sediqqi, Ghani�s spokesman, as saying that the release of the remaining 320 "high value" Taliban prisoners would be halted until the Taliban released a number of Afghan government soldiers.

Sources told, the government is requesting the release of 20 Afghan commandos, and sources within the Taliban said the group will not release them until the release of their 400 prisoners.

Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the Taliban political office in Doha told TOLOnews that the Afghan government is making excuses about the release of prisoners, which is a step preceding the intra-Afghan talks.

The Taliban has also said that they will not attend the intra-Afghan talks until the release of 400 prisoners is completed, said the sources.

This will put the intra-Afghan talks on hold, which were expected to begin in days but are contingent on the remaining Taliban prisoners being released by the Afghan government.

President Ghani signed the decree to release the prisoners a week ago, a process that was first approved by the Loya Jirga, the grand council of at least 3,400 delegates.

But France has asked the Afghan government not to release Taliban fighters convicted of killing French citizens, Reuters reported.

Before the start of the process, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said last week he had lobbied for a former Afghan army soldier, who went rogue and killed three Australian colleagues, to stay in jail, according to a report by Al Jazeera.

According to government data, out of the 400 prisoners in question, 156 of them have been sentenced to death, 105 of them are accused of murder, 34 of them are accused of kidnapping that led to murder, 51 of them are accused of drug smuggling, 44 of them are on the blacklist of the Afghan government and its allies, six of them are accused of assorted other crimes, four are accused of unspecified crimes.

The list of 5,000 prisoners was given to the Afghan government by the Taliban to be released ahead of the intra-Afghan negotiations--the peace talks that are now expected to be held in Doha.

SOURCE: Tolonews

LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/19810

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