Peace talks between the US and Taliban are going to be taking a little time off for the Eid al-Adha holiday. When they come back after the holiday, the Afghan peace deal is going to be the focus again, and the expectation is it will be finalized.



Hopes for a finalized deal are nothing new, but both sides are now saying they believe that a peace agreement will be reached, and signed, at some point in the this week. This will then lead to work on direct Taliban-Afghan talks on power-sharing.



That’s a key issue. The deal with the US involves removing foreign troops, Taliban keeping foreign Islamists out of Afghanistan, and a ceasefire. The power-sharing deal is the last aspect of peace, and the Taliban had long resisted entering such talks until the US pullout was agreed upon.



That’s likely to lead to further delays in the presidential election, tentatively set for September. The election has been delayed before over peace talks, and with a deal now imminent, a further delay is considered so probable that many candidates aren’t even bothering to start campaigning.





Author: Jason Ditz Jason Ditz is news editor of Antiwar.com. View all posts by Jason Ditz