Afghan Taliban chief Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada on Tuesday offered direct peace talks to the United Sates to end the decades-long conflict in Afghanistan. Although Taliban have long been advocating for face-to-face talks with the Americans, it is the first time the Taliban chief has floated the idea amid fresh diplomatic efforts to push for a political solution to the problem. “If the American officials truly believe in a peaceful end to the Afghan imbroglio then they must directly present themselves to the negotiation table so that this tragedy (invasion) – the destructive effects of which mainly harm the American and Afghan people – can be resolved through talks,” the Taliban chief said in his Eid message. “The biggest mistake on part of the American officials is that they approach every problem with stubbornness. But force cannot yield results in every case,” said Hibatullah, who was appointed the Taliban new chief after a US drone killed Akhtar Mansour in May 2016. The US has declined the Taliban repeated calls and urges them to talk to the Afghan government, which the Taliban describe as powerless to make any decision. The Taliban insist the US is the real party to the conflict, who had dislodged their government in late 2001. Haibtullah reiterated Taliban quest for a political solution and said Taliban have “kept the doors of understanding and negotiations open to reach this objective and appointed the Political Office of the Islamic Emirate as the exclusive avenue of activity in this regard”. The Taliban chief defended their armed resistance, saying “We reserve the right to force the invaders out of our homeland.” He continued: “If Afghans’ struggle against the British and Soviet Union was deemed legitimate then our Jihad against the American occupation is also lawful and legitimate.” Habitullah said Afghan problem could be solved only when the US-led foreign troops leave Afghanistan that would pave the way for the establishment of an inclusive government in Kabul. “The only path to rescuing ourselves from all these calamities is for all American and other occupying forces to leave our country and for an independent, Islamic, intra-Afghan government to take root,” the Taliban chief said. The Taliban have announced a three-day ceasefire with the Afghan forces during Eid, but the Taliban chief did not mention the ceasefire and said they would continue fight until the foreign forces quit Afghanistan. Haibtullah lashed out at the Afghan religious scholars who recently issued an edict against the war in Afghanistan. “My message specifically to the Ulema (religious scholars) of Afghanistan is that America and her allies have been defeated in nearly every aspect of this war, therefore, they are currently seeking support of scholars for their vested interests,” he said. Published in Daily Times, June 13th 2018.