The Conservative Friends of Afghanistan (CFA) held an online discussion to assess this critical moment in the peace process and the goals for the negotiations that lie ahead.
The Afghan government and the Taliban have agreed framework rules for peace talks after more than two months of discussions, allowing negotiations on ending a nearly 20-year civil war to finally begin. The peace process, hosted by Qatar, is currently playing out against a backdrop of heavy violence on the ground in Afghanistan and an accelerated withdrawal of US troops. The discussion will draw on the experience and knowledge of the panelists to explore the three-page framework, setting of the agenda for the peace talks and the urgency of a ceasefire.
Speakers:
Masoom Stanikzai, Head of the Peace Negotiation Team for intra-Afghan talks and advisor to President Ashraf Ghani on internal security
Fatima Gailani , Member of Peace Negotiation Team for intra-Afghan talks.
Shabnam Nasimi, Executive Director of Conservative Friends of Afghanistan
Baroness Hodgson, Conservative Life Peer and Member of House of Lords
Barnett Rubin, Senior Fellow at the Centre on International Cooperation (CIC) at New York University
Sultan Barakat, Professor at the Doha Institute and Director of the Centre for Conflict & Humanitarian Studies
Michael Semple, Professor at the Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation and Social Justice at Queen's University Belfast
Heather Barr, (Moderator) Interim Director of the Women's Rights Division, Human Rights Watch (moderator)
