Afghan Leaders Sign Power-Sharing Deal to End Damaging Feud
Afghan Leaders Sign Power-Sharing Deal to End Presidential Feud
(Bloomberg) --
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, rivals in the country’s disputed presidential election, signed a power-sharing accord to end their quarrel over a vote tainted by fraud allegations.
Under the agreement, Ghani will remain president while Abdullah will lead a dedicated council to advance peace talks with Taliban insurgents aimed at ending nearly two decades of war, Ghani’s spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said in a tweet on Sunday. Abdullah will also control part of the cabinet, Sediqqi said.
The development comes as the country works toward talks with the Taliban following the U.S.-engineered deal with the militant group signed on Feb. 29. That agreement was designed to pave the way for the withdrawal of international forces from the country within 14 months and the start of intra-Afghan talks.
The U.S. slashed aid to Afghanistan by $1 billion this year and threatened more cuts could come if Ghani and Abdullah failed to resolve their standoff and form a unity government. It also warned the dispute could derail the peace deal with Taliban.
U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo spoke to both leaders on Sunday to congratulate them on reaching agreement, but also said he regretted the time lost during the political impasse, spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement. A political settlement to end the conflict remains Washington’s priority, she said, noting Pompeo had welcomed the commitment by the two leaders to act immediately on intra-Afghan negotiations.
The agreement mirrors the scenario that emerged following the 2014 presidential election. Ultimately the U.S. intervened and brokered a power-sharing deal between the two men that made Ghani as the president and Abdullah as the chief executive, saving the country from a possible civil war.
Along with a half-share in the cabinet, Abdullah will also have a say in other government appointments such as governor posts, according to the text of the agreement obtained by Bloomberg News. One of his top aides during the election, former Vice-President Abdul Rashid Dustom, who’s accused of beating and raping a political rival, will also be honored with a top military promotion, according to the document.
Ghani was declared winner of the Sept. 28 presidential election but Abdullah rejected the election commission’s ruling and called the outcome fraudulent. Both claimed victory and held parallel inaugural ceremonies in March in the capital Kabul.
“We cannot afford to squander opportunities & international goodwill, especially for a just & comprehensive peace through talks,” Abdullah said in a series of tweets. “I pledge to do my best to work with all sides.”
According to the terms of the U.S.-Taliban accord, intra-Afghan negotiations were to have begun by March 10, only after the Afghan government released up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for 1,000 soldiers. The government has so far released around 1,000 Taliban prisoners, and Taliban say it has released more than 200 government forces.
The militant group last month said it would continue attacking Afghan soldiers until there is an agreed ceasefire.
Since signing the agreement with the U.S., the group has killed hundreds of Afghans. The most recent violence -- not claimed by the Taliban -- killed 24 people including newborn babies in a maternity hospital in Kabul, according to international aid group Médecins Sans Frontières.
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