Radical change of strategy. US diplomatic officials have held secret meetings with Taliban leaders without the presence of the Afghan government. For over a decade, the Taliban have refused to negotiate with the Afghan government, which they consider a puppet regime controlled by Washington. Instead they tried to speak directly with the United States, without the mediation of Kabul. In the 2015, the United States tried to launch peace talks with the Taliban in the capital of Qatar, Doha, but the effort failed because the Afghan government had asked for a seat at the negotiating table. The negotiation process has been set aside since then.
Last week, however, The Wall Street Journal reported that a series of meetings took place between a delegation of senior Taliban officials and an American team led by Alice Wells, deputy assistant secretary of the United States State Department of State Affairs. 'Central Asia. On Saturday, the New York Times confirmed the story, stating that the meetings between the two sides took place in Qatar, where the Taliban have a diplomatic seat. Citing "two senior Taliban officials," the Times said US diplomats met with members of the Taliban political commissariat. But the newspaper said it had no information on the substance or progress of the talks. If the Times claims were confirmed, they would demonstrate a 360-degree shift in US policy on the Taliban. Since 2001, Washington has consistently argued that any negotiation process involving the Taliban would be "an Afghan and Afghan-led affair." Therefore, direct talks between Washington and the Taliban without Kabul's mediation would mark a major shift in US security strategy in Afghanistan and beyond.
The New York Times said it contacted the US State Department in Washington, asking for clarification on the alleged talks. But a spokesman declined to comment on the claims and insisted that "any negotiations on Afghanistan's political future will be between the Taliban and the Afghan government." However, the Times noted that the spokesperson did not expressly deny the existence of talks with the Taliban.