Tehran hosts Taliban peace talks before troop withdrawal

THE Taliban discussed Afghanistan’s “post-occupation situation” with Iran in their latest meeting, the group said yesterday, as Tehran makes a concerted push for peace in the run-up to a possible US withdrawal.

The militants made the disclosure after Iran confirmed on Monday that the Taliban had visited Tehran for a second round of talks in just a few days aimed at ending the 17-year conflict.

The Taliban delegation discussed with Iran “the post-occupation situation, restoration of peace and security in Afghanistan and the region”, the militants said in a statement.

It signals a growing confidence among the Taliban over the prospect of US troops pulling out of Afghanistan, after Donald Trump decided to heavily reduce the number of troops on the ground.

Tehran’s peace push will be viewed with concern in Washington, where there are fears that the planned withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan will cede regional influence to Iran.

The Taliban also met with the US, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia in the United Arab Emirates earlier in December as part of a flurry of diplomatic efforts to end the war. But the Taliban refused to meet a delegation from Afghanistan.

Iran and Afghanistan share a near 600-mile (960km) border and have had a complex relationship in recent years. Tehran worked alongside the US and Western powers to drive out the Taliban after the invasion in 2001.

But there have been allegations that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have in recent years established ties with the Taliban aimed at driving out US forces. ♦ Taliban fighters killed more than 20 Afghan security forces in raids on a provincial capital in northern Afghanistan yesterday. Hundreds of militants were outside Sar-e-pul city, which Zabihullah Amani, the provincial governor’s spokesman, warned was at risk of falling to the Taliban if reinforcements were not sent.