How should peace conferences be convened?

Recently, news regarding an important conference to be hosted by Turkey on the Afghan Peace Process has been circulating in the media. The conference was to bring together stakeholders in the Afghanistan issue. Despite much talk on and preparation for the conference, it could not take place at its planned date. Let us take a […]

Recently, news regarding an important conference to be hosted by Turkey on the Afghan Peace Process has been circulating in the media. The conference was to bring together stakeholders in the Afghanistan issue. Despite much talk on and preparation for the conference, it could not take place at its planned date. Let us take a look at the background of this conference and understand the reason for its not being held on time.

It was understood to be the case that regional harmony and consensus in decision-making on world politics was not very important to the Trump administration, while the new administration under Biden consults stakeholders in vital issues and makes an attempt to attain some kind of consensus.

Afghanistan is the most pressing issue for the Biden administration. The Americans desire to quickly reach a final settlement for the Afghan conflict, alongside a military withdrawal and harmonious agreement among important regional countries. They do not wish to return from Afghanistan empty-handed. Not long ago, US Foreign Minister Anthony Blinken wrote to Ashraf Ghani expressing American intention to have the United Nations bring together Foreign Ministers from Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, India and the US for a discussion regarding peace in Afghanistan.

It was this intention that brought about the Istanbul Conference. It was said that this conference, in which apart from regional and non-regional countries, various Afghan political groups would participate, was to be held in Turkey in mid-April.

However, the weakness in this conference was that its planning came solely from the American side. America and the Kabul administration were enthusiastic for the Conference, while the Islamic Emirate showed no interest in it. The result was that America’s one-sided attempts for the taking place of this conference failed and the conference could not go ahead at its appointed time. It is clear from such experiences that steps taken for the advancement of peace, be they meetings, conferences or anything else, should not be unilateral.

In the same way America has remained unsuccessful in enforcing its schemes upon the Islamic Emirate through military pressure, it likewise cannot be successful in doing so through political pressure. The time, place, agenda and other details of future conferences to be held for the establishment of peace must be decided through mutual understanding and harmony so that they can be conducted with success.