NEW YORK - In a reversal of his earlier stand, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said he would "accept" the opening of a Taliban liaison office in Qatar for the purpose of holding peace talks, according to US media reports from Kabul.
It is the first time that he publicly supported the U.S. plan to have a Taliban office where future Afghan peace talks could be held. The New York Times said Karzai backed down after "prodding" by the United States and its western allies. Karzai, who previously disapproved the plan as he was not taken into confidence while the U.S. and Germany discussed potential location of the office, said that even though he preferred Turkey or Saudi Arabia, he would agree if the Americans wanted it in Doha, the capital of Qatar. "Having an exact address for the Opposition [is a condition] for practical steps toward starting negotiations," he was quoted as saying.
The Afghan leader made no mention of a previous Afghan demand that the Taliban stop fighting before being allowed to open an office. The idea behind the office is to give Afghan and Western peace negotiators an “address” where they can openly contact legitimate Taliban intermediaries. American and Afghan officials, according to the Times, say that setting it up in a country like Qatar — or, for that matter, Saudi Arabia or Turkey — would have the "added benefit of lessening Pakistani influence over the Taliban".
Afghan and American officials fear that Pakistan could use any talks as a way to cement its own influence in Afghanistan, the Times said. They consider that problematic because Pakistan, which has an increasingly tense relationship with Washington, has tolerated the Taliban leadership’s residing there and coordinating attacks into Afghanistan from Pakistan.
Karzai’s reversal on Qatar’s offer to host a Taliban office appeared to represent a small step forward for a peace process that has been marred by a series of false starts.