London: Amid stepped up attacks by the
Taliban on the US-led NATO forces in recent weeks, Britain's
ambassador to Afghanistan today said as many as two-thirds of
those fighting with the insurgents could be persuaded to
change sides.
Expressing cautious optimism about the conduct of the
presidential elections in Afghanistan later this month, Mark
Sedwill said most of those fighting with the Taliban could be
persuaded to switch sides.
According to the British ambassador, he preferred to
describe those insurgents, who could be persuaded to change
sides, as people "going with the Taliban" rather than
"members of the Taliban".
"Maybe two-thirds of those fighting with the Taliban
are in that category [and] possibly could be brought back into
legitimacy," Sedwill was quoted as saying by the Guardian
newspaper today.
He suggested that they could integrate into Afghan
society and institutions, particularly if they were given
adequate means of livelihood.
The envoy's remarks comes amid similar comments by
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband, who had earlier
underlined that reconciliation could involve speaking to the
"moderate" Taliban.
Arguing his point, Sedwill said all the candidates in
the presidential elections, to be held on August 22, have
stressed the importance of "reconciliation" in their
campaigns.
British and NATO troops have been up against increased
attacks by the Taliban in recent weeks and expect a surge in
violence in the run-up to elections, the report said.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, August 06, 2009, 23:05