Small Wars Journal

U.S. Considers Asking Afghanistan to Suspend Presidential Election

Tue, 11/13/2018 - 12:22am

U.S. Considers Asking Afghanistan to Suspend Presidential Election by Jessica Donati, Craig Nelson and Dion Nissenbaum – Wall Street Journal

The Trump administration is discussing whether to press the Afghan government to suspend coming presidential elections, according to people briefed on the discussions, as the U.S. seeks to engage the Taliban in talks to end the 17-year war.

The possibility of such a step, one of several options being considered by U.S. officials, is a sign of the urgency the administration sees in trying to broker a political breakthrough in a conflict that has bedeviled three successive American presidents, according to these people.

To urge a suspension of the April election, an idea these people said was raised by U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in talks with various stakeholders and intermediaries, would be a contentious move after the U.S. has long promoted democracy in Afghanistan. Mr. Khalilzad’s office declined to comment on his efforts…

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