The United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo affirmed the role of Qatar and its great support for bringing peace to Afghanistan, noting that the historic negotiations that started in Doha on Saturday launched a new path for the peace process.
Pompeo said in his speech during the opening session of the Afghanistan Peace Negotiations that everyone must dare to hope and look forward to the light and remember the darkness of the past four decades and the lost lives and opportunities, and note that suffering, pain, blood and destruction now lead to hope for Afghan people and their friends.
The US Secretary of State said the US will not forget the solidarity of its friends and partners in this long war, welcoming at the same time the Taliban's commitment not to host terrorist groups, including Al-Qaeda, and not to allow them to use Afghan soil for training and preparation for their operations, as well as the same commitment of the Afghan government not to allow the state to become a base for international terrorism that threatens the entire world.
He expressed hope that the negotiations would lead to the desired peace and that everyone would be responsible, noting that the entire world wants the talks to succeed to achieve peace in the region.
Pompeo said his country supports Afghanistan that is "sovereign", "united" and "representative of all" and at peace with itself and with its neighbors, explaining that he means that Afghanistan should decide its fate without any external interference, and enjoy relations and cooperation with international partners and neighbours on the basis of mutual respect.
He said by a "united Afghanistan" he means to overcome through a comprehensive negotiation process the negative impact of the divisions and wars that it has lived through over the past four decades, and reaching an agreement on the future of Afghanistan for the benefit of all sections of the Afghan people.
Pompeo called on all participants in the negotiation process to interact with all sections of the Afghan people, including women, ethnic minorities, and war victims, and to produce a political arrangement that rejects the use of violence for political ends.
He advised Afghanistan ,"a representative of all", to adopt democracy, respect human rights, and break the cycle of violence, citing the example of the US adoption of this approach that led to its prosperity and progress and all countries that followed the same path.
Pompeo added that there is no single system that can be applied to all, but protecting all Afghan people is the best way to break the cycle of violence, calling on the participants in the negotiation session to write the next chapter in the history of Afghanistan, a new chapter of progress and stability and the pursuit of peace, development and prosperity and not a chapter of bloody conflicts, violence and corruption, and to be based on negotiation for political, economic and social gains that have been achieved over the past 20 years.
The US Secretary of State called on negotiators to bear in mind when making decisions that these decisions will affect the volume and scope of American aid.
He added that everyone should realise that they will face many challenges during negotiations in the coming days, weeks and months, and when facing these challenges, everyone should remember that he is working for this generation and future generations.
He urged everyone to take advantage of this opportunity, protect this process, respect each other, be patient and focus on this mission, and stressed that the US is ready to support these negotiations.
