The Afghan peace conundrum
No sooner had the heated diplomatic state between Washington and Islamabad cooled down that the Afghan Interior Ministry started pointing finger of accusation at the ISI for being behind the murder of ex-President and peace envoy Burhanuddin Rabbani. This was met with a firm rebuttal by the Foreign Office which has termed the allegation baseless saying that Afghan security agencies might be involved in this and other such killings.
Meanwhile, Afghan President Hamid Karzai is reportedly reviewing his strategy for peace with the Taliban with his officials indicating that he is expected to make an announcement soon. The High Peace Council which has backed the decision for a policy review has suggested that the talks must continue, but with Pakistan rather than the Taliban.
Mr Rabbani’s killing took place at a time when the Karzai government was in the process of initiating talks with the Taliban in what was being described as an attempt at ending the 10-year insurgency in the war-ravaged country. Reports emanating from the Presidential Palace in Kabul indicated that Mr Karzai would make a formal request to the UN for conducting investigation into the former President’s murder on his return from India.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which had improved considerably over the past few years, seem to have strained with Kabul once again indulging in intense finger pointing without any solid evidence to support its claim that assassination was plotted in Quetta. Mr Karzai should have exercised some restraint, especially after Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had offered to cooperate in the investigation during his recent visit to Kabul.
The PM has rightly advised the Afghan President against playing into the hands of the powers which weren’t in favour of a stable Afghanistan. But he should also direct the Foreign Office to exercise caution and avoid public altercation with the Afghan authorities; the issue relating to Mr Rabbani’s murder should be sorted out through mature diplomacy.
