The security handover in Afghanistan has begun with the first seven cities and regions being transferred from NATO to local forces’ responsibility. Now the Taliban will not want to fight against their own kin, says peace activist Jake Diliberto.
The next set of areas are expected to come under Kabul’s control at the end of this year. The process of transition is scheduled to last until 2014.
After that, foreign troops will only remain in Afghanistan in support roles, such as the training of local police.
Violence has recently spiked in the country, with insurgents specifically targeting the regions undergoing the handover.
But the Taliban will not be that eager to fight once foreign forces are gone, says Jake Diliberto, RT Blogger and a member of the Rethink Afghanistan movement.
“The Taliban has grown as a result of continued US presence in southern Afghanistan. So by the US leaving you are going to see the Taliban basically not want to fight as much, because they are fighting the Afghans. You are going to see an Afghan peace process take place, because the Afghans, generally speaking, do not want to fight with each other, they simply want to live and co-exist,” Diliberto told RT.
Afghans are better off governing themselves without the US or coalition forces, added the blogger, as the West through its peace keeping mission has unintentionally killed a lot of people. Still, Diliberto expects Washington to stay involved into Afghanistan’s affairs for some more time despite withdrawing the actual troops.