Peace Conference Plans Derailed as Taliban Object to Afghan Delegation

After several rounds of talks, the Taliban and American negotiators seem to be near a deal on major issues, including the withdrawal of American troops and a Taliban guarantee that international terrorist groups will not be allowed on Afghan soil. But that progress cannot be finalized until Afghans negotiate a political future for the country after the American withdrawal.

After the latest round of talks with Americans last month, the Taliban had quietly agreed to the participation, in a private capacity, of some government officials in the conference this weekend. But they regarded the final list of participants as essentially a government delegation, according to Taliban representatives and Western diplomats. It did not help that the office of Afghanistan’s president, Ashraf Ghani, in announcing the list on Tuesday, called it “the delegation of the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.”

Soon after the list’s release, the Taliban’s main spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said in a statement that the Qatari hosts had made it clear “both in written and verbal form” that no one at the conference would be representing the government, and that any official who was there would be participating in a personal capacity.

“The creators of the Kabul list must realize that this is an orderly and prearranged conference in a faraway Gulf country and not an invitation to some wedding or other party at a hotel in Kabul,” Mr. Mujahid said, alluding to the large number of participants.

Even before the latest complication, the makeup of the delegation had been a divisive issue for the political elite in Kabul. The peace talks are overlapping with national elections, in which Mr. Ghani is seeking another five-year term, and the question of who would participate in the conference was caught up in domestic political jostling with every player wanting a piece.

Mr. Ghani’s camp sees the opposition forces, normally divided, as united in one goal: using the peace process to topple him. For their part, opposition groups, along with some Western diplomats, regard Mr. Ghani’s team as stubborn, not genuinely committed to any peace efforts they cannot control, and firm in the belief that they have a better chance at retaining power if the talks are scuttled.