Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Posts tagged: HPC

HPC

A view of the quadrilateral talks in Kabul. Source: Etilaat-e Ruz.

In Search of a Peace Process: A ‘new’ HPC and an ultimatum for the Taleban

Thomas Ruttig •

Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the US – the Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) – are pushing to open a new chapter in the ongoing search for a peace process for Afghanistan. The group has now met for the fourth time, although direct talks with the Taleban have yet to begin. Earlier this week, it issued an […]

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Meeting Mullah Baradar… or Maybe Not: Confusion over Taleban Talks

Kate Clark •

Yet again there is the impression of something being afoot on the matter of talks with the Taleban, at least as far as Afghan government aspirations go. During the visit of Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, to Kabul on 30 November 2013, both leaders had nice words to say about the peace process, with Sharif […]

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The Qatar Office Conundrum: Karzai’s quest for control over Taleban talks

Thomas Ruttig •

During President Karzai’s recent visit to Qatar, discussions about a possible Taleban office were high on the agenda, and the visit had been charged with expectations in advance. Surprisingly, not much has been officially publicised about its outcome after the president returned home. AAN’s Senior Analyst Thomas Ruttig tries to make sense of the trip […]

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Taliban Peace Talks Flounder as Troops Draw Down

admin •

AP, 3 February 2013 Kathy Gannon’s analysis of where things stand: mistrust and ‘fragile egos’ among the key players US, Afghanistan and Pakistan, competing backdoor channels (Taleban members ‘in contact with representatives from 30 to 40 different countries’) and the latest addition to the list of preconditions: President Karzai wants the Taleban ‘to publicly announce […]

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Qatar, Islamabad, Chantilly, Ashgabad: Taleban Talks Season Again? (amended)

Thomas Ruttig •

There has again been movement in the positions marking the landscape of ‘reconciliation’ or, more precisely, of contacts and possible negotiations with the Taleban seem to be moving again. A track II meeting, labelled as ‘intra-Afghan’ talks, was held in France and, before that, the so-called ‘HPC roadmap’ leaked, indicating a more active role of […]

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The Mulla Dadullah Front: A search for clues

Thomas Ruttig •

A Mulla Dadullah Front has claimed responsibility for assassinating the High Peace Council member, Mawlawi Arsala Rahmani, on 13 May. Some in the media, as well as the Afghan authorities have picked up on the claim – and some alleged members of the Front have been arrested. Although this is not actually the first sighting […]

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Another Hit at the High Peace Council: Arsala Rahmani Killed (amended)

Kate Clark •

One of the leading reconciled Taleban, Arsala Rahmani, who was also a senator and, until last month, acting head of the High Peace Council, has been shot dead in Kabul. On 3 May, the Taleban declared they would be targeting High Peace Council members in their ‘Spring Offensive’, but a spokesman has said they did […]

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A second Rabbani takes the helm at the High Peace Council

Gran Hewad •

The competition for a successor to the late former president Burhanuddin Rabbani at the head of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council (HPC) is over: Rabbani’s eldest son Salahuddin has been appointed by President Karzai. But is this appointment a real attempt to get a peace process on track, or is it instead, simply an alliance-building manoeuvre […]

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Farewell to the Boss? Mujaddedi resigns

Thomas Ruttig •

It is still not clear whether the resignation of Hazrat Sebghatullah Mujaddedi from all government positions last week was meant to be permanent, or a political manoeuvre planned to improve his chances in moving to lead the High Peace Council. Nevertheless, it is worth a closer look, argues Thomas Ruttig, Senior Analyst at AAN (with […]

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Is the Afghan Peace Process Really in Shambles?

Thomas Ruttig •

Thomas Ruttig, in: IDN Nação e Defesa (Lisbon), no 130 (2011), pp 31-54. (Abstract online only:) In the article published in the journal of the Portuguese Instituto da Defesa Nactional (IDN), AAN’s Thomas Ruttig looks at the repercussions of the killing of Afghan HPC chairman Burhanuddin Rabbani and warns to interpret the assassination (the background […]

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Death of Rabbani (5): Where is the evidence?

Kate Clark •

Three weeks after the killing of Burhanuddin Rabbani, the Afghan authorities appear to have found out astonishingly little about who ordered and carried out this plot. As part of a new tranche of documents and testimony from the investigation, the Afghan intelligence agency, the NDS, has released videoed testimony from Hamidullah, the go-between who introduced […]

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A Message for Peace in the Middle of War

Sari Kouvo •

While the killing of the Head of the High Peace Council on Tuesday certainly sent a strong message that peace will not be easily attained in Afghanistan, Afghan civil society organizations have used the week around World Peace Day celebrated on 21 September to campaign for peace, sending messages that peace has to be attained […]

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