2-3 minutes
Foreign Minister Winston Peters says the US-Taliban peace
agreement is a major step forward, as the government considers the
implications for New Zealand troops.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters
Photo: RNZ / Patrice Allen
The US and the Taliban
signed the peace agreement today in an effort to end more than 18 years of conflict.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters described the agreement as
a major step forward and said it signalled the start of negotiations
between the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan.
He said it may take some time before it was clear what would happen with New Zealand's troop deployment to Afghanistan.
Waikato University law professor Alexander Gillespie said the
potential peace treaty was the same precedent as ending the Vietnam war,
and a huge deal.
"It's great that we've got to this point so far. We have spent
literally trillions of dollars, there have been hundreds of thousands of
lives lost and all we've achieved after 18 years of fighting is that
Taliban's agreed that Al Qaeda and similar groups like Islamic State
will not be resident in Afghanistan anymore."
Prof Gillespie said it set a very clear road map for the more than
3800 Coalition troops in the area, including 10 soldiers from New
Zealand.
"It's a two-step process, it's the Coalition troops will slowly be
drawn down but in exchange there will be formal recognition of the
Taliban, sanctions will be lifted, and they will start negotiations
directly with the Afghanistan government."
He said the deal could lead to New Zealand's troops exiting, depending on the result of negotiations.
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