India in Move to Form Anti-Taliban Coalition in Afghanistan

Introduction

On September 4, the office of Afghan President Hamid Karzai issued a statement announcing the formation of a High Council for Peace to hold peace talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan.[1] The statement was issued after President Karzai chaired a meeting of senior national personalities, including politicians and former mujahideen leaders, to discuss final steps needed to formally set up the High Council for Peace.

The formation of the High Council for Peace is part of President Karzai's moves for peace talks with the Taliban, a strategy that seeks to reintegrate the militants into Afghan society by giving them administrative and police jobs. The Karzai initiative is supported by the United States and the Pakistani military's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which backs the Taliban. The ISI hopes that some Taliban leaders will be part of the Kabul government as a result of the talks.[2]

According to a report on the Afghan website tolonews.com, the High Council for Peace will have around 50 people, including members of civil society, women, former militants, and figures from the opposition and government.[3] The members' names will be announced after Eid-ul-Fitr (i.e. September 9, 10 or 11), the annual festival that marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.

In recent months, the ISI has pursued a dual policy of supporting the secret talks with the Taliban in order to gain a foothold in Kabul, as well as of encouraging the Taliban to increase their attacks on the U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.[4] The prospect of the Taliban returning to power in Kabul as a result of the talks worries India the most, as it has poured in hundreds of millions of dollars in reconstruction works in Afghanistan. Now, India is recalibrating its Afghan policy.

Report: Dr. Abdullah, General Dostum and Amrullah Saleh Attempt To Form Anti-Taliban Coalition

Image from left to right: Dr. Abdullah, General Dostum and Amrullah Saleh

According to a report in the Pashtu-language Afghan newspaper Wrazpanra Weesa, India and other regional powers are moving in the direction of forming an anti-Taliban coalition.[5]

Over the past two weeks some former leaders of the Northern Alliance, which assumed power after the U.S. troops dislodged the Taliban from power in 2001, have held secret talks with Indian officials to build an alliance against the Taliban in Afghanistan.[6]

The Pashtu daily quoted a "reliable source" – who spoke on the condition of anonymity – as saying that General Abdul Rasheed Dostum, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, and Amrullah Saleh have held separate talks with Indian officials.[7] (Separately to these three leaders, Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Zalmay Rasul and National Security Adviser Rangin Dadfar Spanta too visited India recently.[8])

All three leaders are known for their strong stance against the Taliban and ISI. General Dostum, chief of Junbish-i-Milli Islami party, is a former Uzbek militia leader who fought against the Taliban regime. Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, the former Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, was Karzai's main contender during the August 2009 presidential elections. Amrullah Saleh was recently removed from his post as the head of the National Security Directorate, the Afghan intelligence, due to his opposition to talks with the Taliban.

According to the Wrazpanra Weesa report, these three leaders are trying to garner India's support to again revive the Northern Alliance against the Taliban in Afghanistan. Most of the parties that constituted the Northern Alliance during the Taliban regime are part of the current government headed by President Karzai.

According to a second report on the Afghan website tolonews.com, the three reportedly held some meetings in the last ten days with Indian officials in India. The report also noted that General Dostum made trip to India regarding the formation of the anti-Taliban coalition, but such reports have been dismissed as "baseless."[9]

As soon as the reports emerged that the three leaders are holding secret talks with India to revive the Northern Alliance as a bulwark against the Taliban's likely return to power, Dr. Abdullah and Amrullah Saleh issued statements on September 5 strongly rejecting these reports as "rumors."[10]

Amrullah Saleh, who recently argued publicly that he quit his post as intelligence chief because of his opposition to the secret peace talks with the Taliban, rejected the media reports about any talks with India, stating: "I don't need any foreign countries to support or guide me setting political goals and political activities. I am in contact with all Afghan leaders."[11]

Dr. Abdullah also rejected the reports, stating: "There is no such thing about the formation of something like a coalition, and it has been months that I haven't had any contact with General Dostum and I haven't sought help from any foreign countries either."[12]

*Tufail Ahmad is Director of MEMRI's Urdu-Pashtu Media Project.