EU calls for inclusive peace process in Afghanistan

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan

A European Parliament delegation to Afghanistan on Thursday called for an inclusive peace process to end conflict in the country.

Two European lawmakers, Lithuanian Petras Austrevicius and Italian Herbert Dorfmann, told reporters they welcomed a deal signed between the Afghan government and the former rebel leader Gulbudin Hekmatyar’s Hezb-e-Islami (HI) party last year.

The two MEPs also called for a broadening of the peace process by incorporating the views of all segments of society -- including women and different ethnic, tribal and social groups across Afghanistan.

Last year's unprecedented peace deal inked between the HI and the Kabul government has paved the way for Hekmatyar -- a former Mujahedeen leader -- to return home after years of self-imposed exile.

Last month, the UN removed his name from its black list at the request of the Afghan government.

“We can understand the complex situation the country is facing right now; we believe the first step for peace in Afghanistan was quite good, and it should continue," Austrevicius said -- a clear reference to the peace deal reached with Hekmatyar.

Earlier this month, on the 28th anniversary of the Red Army’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani renewed a call for peace with the Taliban, but it was not responded to by the militant group which insists upon a complete withdrawal of foreign forces.

The MEPs said effective results from the Afghan government were needed to counter corruption. They said economic development, good governance, improved policing and combating corruption were the main priorities of the EU in Afghanistan.

Dorfmann also said jobs should be created in Afghanistan for migrants returning from the EU to ensure their successful repatriation.