15 September

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has made a renewed appeal for peace talks after US President Donald Trump abruptly called off negotiations with the Taliban.

He said in a speech on Saturday that legitimate peace can only be achieved by direct dialogue, not by war. Trump suspended peace talks with the militant group on September 7 after the insurgents killed 12 people, including a US soldier, in a car bomb attack in Kabul. It came just days after Washington said that both sides had agreed on a draft peace accord in principle.

Meanwhile, delegates of the Taliban visited Moscow. Russian media reported that they met with President Vladimir Putin's envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, on Friday. It is believed that Russia underscored the need to talk with Washington and the Taliban confirmed their readiness to engage. One Taliban negotiator told NHK that they will not abandon the fight until all US troops leave Afghanistan but they also have begun preparations for renewed talks.

But a revival of talks down the road is rendered uncertain in light of the vow by both the US and the Taliban to step up battlefield attacks.—NHK