On February 14, a senior American official informed that the US and Taliban have agreed on a deal for a seven-day reduction of violence in Afghanistan which will apply across the country. In the backdrop of the deal, Dr. S. Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, has been active on the geopolitical front by meeting US envoy for Afghanistan and praising the peace deal.
Crux of the Matter
After more than a year of grueling talks between US officials and Taliban, both are seeking an end to a long war by having a full peace accord. The Taliban for a long time has been demanding the complete withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan but the officials say that any reduction in troops will depend on the militants sticking to their commitments made in the deal. After unveiling the details of the agreement that included commitments from both the parties, the US hopes that this will lead to a full peace accord.
Unveiling the Deal Approximately 12,000 to 13,000 US Military troops are currently present in Afghanistan who will be monitoring the reduction in violence to ensure that the Taliban upholds its commitments. A US official said, “We will be monitoring the situation and if the Taliban deliver on their commitments we have commitments, in terms of reduction of forces that are also specific.” Taliban will have to explicitly commit that it will ensure the removal of Al-Qaeda from Afghanistan and that it will fight the terrorist group Islamic State (IS). For this, the US and Afghanistan will sign an annex that will allow US to monitor territorial breaches and to share information on counterterrorism.
Geopolitical Arena On the sidelines of the Munich conference, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has briefed Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on the deal with the Taliban. If the partial peace prevails then it is hoped that it could lead to the next stage of negotiations between the Taliban and the Kabul government. Also, India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar met the US special envoy on Afghan reconciliation and the Saudi foreign minister to discuss regional and global issues.
Met @US4AfghanPeace Zalmay Khalilzad at #MSC2020. Appreciated his update on the Afghanistan negotiations. pic.twitter.com/Nw6zRtvUGF — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) February 15, 2020
These meetings of the EAM with delegates of the US and Afghanistan come at a crucial time when there is a deal in process between the US and the Taliban to reduce violence and withdrawal of American troops from war-torn Afghanistan. Dr. S.Jaishankar also met Defence Ministers of Australia and Singapore, Linda Reynolds and Ng Eng Hen respectively to discuss increased cooperation for working in the areas of security.
#WATCH EAM S Jaishankar replies, "Do not worry Senator. One democracy will settle it & you know which one" to US Senator Lindsey Graham, after the latter said, "When it comes to Kashmir, I do not know how it ends but let us make sure that two democracies will end it differently". pic.twitter.com/kmbIu4baoN — ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2020
He also held meetings with the members of the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee to strengthen ties between Indian and the European Union. On February 15, Dr. S.Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to discuss the bilateral relationship ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to India on February 24 and 25. The Munich Security Conference which is the world’s leading forum for debate on international security policy was held from February 14-16, 2020.
Curiopedia
The Munich Security Conference is an annual conference on international security policy that has taken place in Munich, Bavaria since 1963. Over the past four decades the Munich Security Conference has become the most important independent forum for the exchange of views by international security policy decision-makers. Each year it brings together about 350 senior figures from more than 70 countries around the world to engage in an intensive debate on current and future security challenges. The list of attendees includes Heads of States, Governments and International Organizations, Ministers, Members of Parliament, high-ranking representatives of Armed Forces, Science, Civil society as well as Business and Media. More Info
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