Monday, March 22, 2021

White House News (白宮消息) | Mar. 22, 2021

 https://smashwords2.weebly.com/1.html


Doha (Arabicالدوحة‎, ad-Dawḥa or ad-Dōḥapronounced [adˈdawħa]) is the capital and most populous city of the State of Qatar. It has a population of 956,460 (2015).[1] The city is located on the coast of the Persian Gulf in the east of the country, North of Al Wakrah and South of Al Khor. It is Qatar's fastest growing city, with over 80% of the nation's population living in Doha or its surrounding suburbs,[2] and it is the political and economic center of the country.     from Wikipedia


The Doha Experiment: Arab Kingdom, Catholic College, Jewish Teacher

Gary Wasserman’s decision to head to Qatar to teach at Georgetown sounds questionable, at best. “In the beginning,” he writes, “this sounds like a politically incorrect joke. A Jewish guy walks into a fundamentalist Arab country to teach American politics at a Catholic college.” But he quickly discovers that he has entered a world that gives him a unique perspective on the Middle East and on Muslim youth; that teaches him about the treatment of Arab women and what an education will do for them, both good and bad; shows him the occasionally amusing and often deadly serious consequences his students face simply by living in the Middle East; and finds surprising similarities between his culture and the culture of his students.


Most importantly, after eight years of teaching in Qatar he realizes he has become part of a significant, little understood movement to introduce liberal, Western values into traditional societies. Written with a sharp sense of humor, The Doha Experiment offers a unique perspective on where the region is going and clearly illustrates why Americans need to understand this clash of civilizations.
Click here to learn more about upccoming events, promotions, and more.     source from


Taliban spokesperson Mohammad Naeem said that the first item of business will be setting the
agenda

Afghan peace talks resume in Doha as US reviews Taliban deal


Peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan gov’t resume in Doha after weeks of delays and change in US diplomatic leadership.

Date published on Feb. 23, 2021Peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government have resumed in the Qatari capital Doha after weeks of delays, escalating violence and a change in US diplomatic leadership as the Biden administration began.

Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem tweeted on Monday night the resumption of the talks, which were the outcome of an agreement between the Afghan armed group and the US in February 2020.


But the administration of President Joe Biden is reviewing the agreement, which was aimed at ending the longest war the US has fought. The Taliban has been fighting the combined forces of the Western-backed Kabul government and foreign troops since it was toppled in a US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

Last week, the Taliban in an open letter called on the US to fully implement the Doha accord, including the withdrawal of all international troops, saying it had committed to its side of the deal – to secure US security interests in the war-torn country.     more details

Previously Articles:
Afghanistan launches year’s first polio vaccination drive
Hazaras fear for future as Afghanistan risks slipping into chaos
What options does Biden have in Afghanistan?


Qatar says it is committed to sustainable peace in Afghanistan
Qatar to join Afghan peace talks in Moscow: Official

Special envoy of Qatar, Ambassador Mutlaq Alqahtani, to participate in the March 18 meeting in Moscow, official tells Al Jazeera.

Date Published on Mar. 16
Qatar will attend a Russia-sponsored summit this week to discuss the future of war-ravaged Afghanistan, a senior official said in a statement to Al Jazeera.

Qatar’s special envoy, Ambassador Mutlaq Alqahtani, will participate in the March 18 meeting in Moscow, the official said on Tuesday.

“The state of Qatar is committed to sustainable peace in Afghanistan. Qatar will continue to facilitate the ongoing intra-Afghan negotiations,” he said, according to the statement.

“Qatar is working closely with its strategic partners to establish international and regional consensus over this process.”
The official said the meeting in Moscow on Thursday “will build upon the historic United States-Taliban peace agreement signed in Doha” in February last year and the “comprehensive intra-Afghan negotiations currently taking place in Doha”.

The Taliban and the government of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani have agreed to attend the conference in Russia, which is seeking to raise its profile in the Afghan peace efforts.


The US Department of State on Monday said Washington’s special envoy to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, will also attend the meeting.

China and Pakistan have also been invited to the talks, which come ahead of a May deadline for US President Joe Biden to decide whether to end the US’s two-decade military involvement in Afghanistan.     continued 

US Defense Secretary Meets Ghani in Kabul

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is in Kabul for an unannounced visit, sources said, adding that he is expected to meet with high-ranking Afghan officials.

Mar. 21 -  President Ghani met with US defense secretary on Sunday afternoon, the Presidential Palace said, adding that both expressed their concerns over the increase of violence in the country.

Ghani and US defense secretary stressed that enduring and just peace is the main solution for the current situation in Afghanistan, the Palace said, adding that Mr. Austin said that the United States is supporting Afghanistan in this respect.

His trip comes after he visited India where he and his Indian counterpart pledged to expand their military engagement, underscoring the strengthening defense ties between two countries concerned over China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region, according to the Associated Press. 

His trip comes as the US is reviewing the Doha agreement with the Taliban while also keeping all options on the table when it comes to the May 1st deadline for withdrawal from Afghanistan. 

Quoting two sources, NBC News reported last week that President Joe Biden is considering keeping US troops in Afghanistan until November, rather than withdrawing them by a May 1 deadline outlined in the Doha agreement. 

In recent discussions with members of his national security team, Biden has pushed back against the Defense Department’s efforts to keep US troops in Afghanistan beyond May 1, one of the people said, as quoted by NBC News. But he has been persuaded to consider a six-month extension.      source from

No comments:

Post a Comment

Featured Post

Mischief Reef |Mar. 25

  WH keeping public in dark on what Biden demanded of China’s Xi over arming Putin​ Mar. 18 - The White House was tight-lipped Friday about ...