Daily Times

When it comes to women, Donald Trump likes to go in for the hard grab. Yet he turns rather the smooth talker when it comes to his dealings with men. When, of course, the mood suits him. As it did back over the summer when he couldn’t hold back from telling Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi how much he loved his shoes.

That the unquiet American has a not-so-quiet penchant for a good old-fashioned bromance is possibly something that the hurly burly Afghan Taliban tapped into when issuing Mr Trump with an elaborate ultimatum.

In its 1,600-word open letter, penned in English, the Taliban used the language of the flatterer to get its message across and to get the deal done for a total US military withdrawal. Calling for Trump to interact “generously” with the Afghan people, the militant group went on to describe him as a “responsible American president”.

This is some of the best foreign press that Trump has had in a while.

The question now is whether or not it is sufficient to sway the apprentice-president. Who rather has his hands full, it must be said, what with all the macho posturing for Kim Jong-un’s pleasure. Not to mention the vitriolic rhetoric reserved especially for Iran, for old time’s sake.

We urge Trump to do as the Taliban asks. For this is a tough neighbourhood and the US military presence is only making things worse. This is not a call to surrender to militants — for the US has long been said to be up for Taliban peace talks. Yet we have to ask: what kind of negotiated peace can be achieved while a military occupation is ongoing?

Another reason to give peace with the Taliban a chance is that all those Afghan insurgent groups that the US accuses Pakistan of harbouring would be free to go back home. Meaning that the Pakistani state’s hand would be forced into ensuring that those who should not be here are not. This would also herald an end to American drone strikes raining down on this country. Given that these only target those groups posing a direct threat to US troops across the border or else the American homeland. Meaning that Washington has never been terribly bothered about helping us out with those who represent a menace to the Pakistani state itself. Baitullah Mehsud, after all, was only taken out after he threatened to hit Washington.

And then there is perhaps the most appealing reason for Trump to do the Taliban shuffle. He would go down in history as the man who brought peace to Afghanistan where others failed. That should be reason enough. Especially as he wouldn’t have to lift a finger in terms of coming up with an exit strategy. The Taliban would, in effect, take care of that for him. And then the door would possibly be open to call on them for help in the future. For this, as we have already said, is a tough neighbourhood. *

Published in Daily Times, August 16^th 2017.