ISLAMABAD: The former CIA station chief in Islamabad Robert Grenier has said he does not think the Taliban will “honestly” participate in peace negotiations and suggests that uprisings in Taliban controlled areas be supported in order to unsettle the insurgent group.
Mr Grenier was speaking at the launch of his book ’88 Days to Kandahar: a CIA Diary’ at the Institute of Strategic Studies. The book is about the role played by CIA, operating out of Pakistan, after 9/11 including the initiation of rebellion in southern Afghanistan’s Pashtun areas against the Taliban to the installation of Hamid Karzai as the leader of an interim government between Sept 11 and Dec 7, 2001.
Talking about the Taliban refusing to join the peace talks facilitated by the Quadrilateral Coordination Group until their conditions were met, Mr Grenier said: “Before the Afghan Taliban come to the table and agree to negotiate in good faith, they will have to be convinced that a military victory is beyond their reach”.
That, he said, is not the situation now.
Last year the Taliban gained a number of military successes, including a brief capture of Kunduz. It is believe that the group either control or maintain a significant presence in at least 30 districts in Afghanistan.
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