US Senator Sharply Opposes US trust in Taliban
KABUL (MEP) — A prominent Republican senator has expressed serious concern about US talks, negotiations and confidence on Taliban, and has described it as worse than a nuclear deal with Iran.
Lindsay Graham has made it clear that “trust in the Taliban would be a bigger mistake than Obama’s Iranian nuclear deal.”
The Republican senator tweeted, “To trust the Taliban to control Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and other radical Islamist groups present in Afghanistan – as a replacement for a US counter-terrorism force – would be a bigger mistake than Obama’s Iranian nuclear deal.”
Although he did not specify his main target audience, he appears to have addressed the current US President Donald Trump.
In another part of his tweet, he said, “American soldiers in Afghanistan are not acting as policemen. They are the front-line defense for America against the reemergence of radical Islamist groups who wish to attack the American homeland.”
Criticizing a peace deal with the Taliban, he warns President Trump not to repeat Obama’s mistake and learn from it that any peace agreement which denies the US robust counter-terrorism capability in Afghanistan is not a peace deal.
Instead, it is paving the way for another attack on the American homeland and attacks against American interests around the world.
Graham has insisted he will wait for a congressional hearing on the proposed peace deal with the Taliban.
The US Senate has the power to reject and amend the text of the agreement.
The comments come as the former NATO commander in Afghanistan, David Petraeus, has warned that the mistake of withdrawal from Iraq should not be repeated in Afghanistan.
It is also worth noting that Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special envoy for peace in Afghanistan, announced a few days ago that he was in Washington to report to US officials ending the eighth round of talks with the Taliban in Qatar.
There is also speculation that a US-Taliban agreement will be signed soon.
