- +10
Jarrett Blanc, Thomas de Waal, Karim Sadjadpour, …
{
"authors": [
"Jarrett Blanc"
],
"type": "legacyinthemedia",
"centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "americanStatecraft",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"programAffiliation": "ASP",
"programs": [
"American Statecraft"
],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"Middle East",
"Qatar",
"Gulf"
],
"topics": [
"Political Reform",
"Foreign Policy"
]
}Source: Getty
Closing the Taliban’s Office in Qatar Would Be a Historic Mistake
U.S. and Afgani leaders have agreed to ask Qatar to close the Taliban's political commission office. This would be a mistake that would prevent further negotiations to end the war in Afghanistan. The office has previously proved its usefulness in a prisoner exchange.
Source: Defense One
President Trump and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani agreed last week to ask the government of Qatar to shutter the Afghan Taliban’s political commission office in Doha.
Following through would be a historic mistake. It would foreclose on the possibility of a negotiated settlement, the only realistic and honorable way to end America’s longest war.
About the Author
Former Senior Fellow, Geoeconomics and Strategy Program
Jarrett Blanc was a senior fellow in the Geoeconomics and Strategy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
- Conflict Zones in the Time of Coronavirus: War and War by Other MeansResearch
- The Best Books of 2020, as Chosen by Carnegie ScholarsCommentary
- +3
Dan Baer, Rosa Balfour, Jarrett Blanc, …
Recent Work
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Europe
- Taking the Pulse: Is Canada Leading a Third Way?Commentary
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has twice inspired praise for standing up to U.S. President Donald Trump: at the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos and on Canada-U.S. trade negotiations. Is Carney showing a third way better than the EU has in dealing with the Trump administration?
Rym Momtaz, ed.
- Europe’s Self-Confidence ProblemCommentary
The EU’s responses to two recent incidents expose the gulf between European perceptions and capabilities. Unless the union can bridge that gap, it will never become a real geostrategic power.
Rym Momtaz
- Europe’s Overseas Countries and Territories as Geopolitical AssetsArticle
European states control several Overseas Countries and Territories around the world that carry strategic, economic, and environmental weight. As great powers challenge the rules-based order, defending them is a geopolitical imperative for Europe.
Marc Pierini
- Letter from the Editor: Europe Takes Two Steps Forward But One Step BackCommentary
As we close out another season of Strategic Europe, it is worth taking stock of the deep shifts underway.
Rym Momtaz
- Taking the Pulse: Are the EU’s Watered-Down Russia Sanctions Better than None?Commentary
The EU had to compromise to adopt a twenty-first sanctions package against Russia, exposing growing cracks in the union’s resolve. Is this latest, weaker round worth it to keep pressure on Moscow?
Rym Momtaz, ed.