Taliban does not intend to honour peace pact, US intel indicates

• US officials say Taliban have no intention of abiding by their agreement.
• Taliban view the peace pact as a means of pushing American "occupiers” out of the country, opening a door for asserting themselves in Afghanistan: NBC.
• US President Trump says Taliban should do something to show that we are not wasting time.

(Karachi) U.S. intelligence officials said that the Taliban do not intend to honor the recently-signed peace agreement with the United States.

In an article published in NBC News, the US officials said, "They have no intention of abiding by their agreement.” They said the US had credible intelligence reports that the Taliban will back away from the peace process.

The NBC News reported that the Taliban view the peace pact as a means of pushing American "occupiers” out of the country, opening a door for asserting themselves in Afghanistan.

Speaking to media a Taliban member said, "We will ask the Afghan leadership and other political factions that since the U.S. has accepted us and recognized our position, it is time for you to accept us and give us the country peacefully.”

In a press conference on Saturday, US President Donald Trump commented, "I really believe that the Taliban wants to do something to show that we're not all wasting time.”

As part of the accord between the United States and the Taliban, both were committed to work expeditiously to release combat and political prisoners as a confidence-building measure, with the coordination and approval of all relevant sides.

Up to 5,000 jailed Taliban will be released in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan government captives by March 10, as per the pact.

The US officials and Taliban representatives inked an agreement after months of negotiations in Qatar's capital Doha that aimed to end the United States's longest war, fought in Afghanistan since 2001. The pact was signed in the presence of leaders from Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, India, Indonesia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. The agreement will pave the way for the US to gradually withdraw its troops.

The two sides have long wrangled over the US demand for a ceasefire before the signing of the agreement, which has four points: a timeline of 14 months for the withdrawal of all US and NATO troops from Afghanistan; a Taliban guarantee that Afghan soil will not be used as a launchpad that would threaten the security of the US; the launch of intra-Afghan negotiations by March 10; and a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire.