The President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Mr Attila Mesterhazy (Hungary) issued the following statement on 18 May 2020:
“I welcome yesterday’s inclusive power-sharing agreement between President Ashraf Ghani and Dr Abdullah Abdullah. With this important step, Afghanistan’s political leaders have put aside their differences and come together to solve the country’s challenges, at a time when their citizens suffer from the combined effects of continued violence and instability and the COVID-19 pandemic.
I hope this deal will inject new momentum into intra-Afghan peace negotiations, which the Assembly fully supports. In turn, the Taliban must put an end to violence and work in good faith to achieve the compromises needed for a lasting and inclusive peace.
Negotiations must resume without delay and be conducted in an inclusive manner – by Afghans for Afghans.
Peace must protect the political, economic, and civil society achievements since 2001, in particular the hard-won rights of Afghan women and girls, and it must ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a haven for international terrorism.
To firmly establish security and stability in Afghanistan, the Assembly will continue building support for NATO’s Resolute Support training mission and for the provision of long-term financial and technical assistance to address major post-conflict challenges.
I am looking forward to discussing progress on these matters with our long-standing partners in the parliament of Afghanistan when we next meet.”