'Rapid US troops withdrawal would increase bloodshed', says Afghan envoy

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s special envoy Umer Daudzai has said that the rapid withdrawal of US troops from the country would only create a "vacuum and increase bloodshed".

During an interview with CNN, Daudzai was quoted as saying, "If it happened in a matter that's not orderly ... if it happens that it leaves a vacuum behind, then obviously bloodshed would increase."

Daudzai told CNN that while the peace talks in Qatar have brought "clarity", neither side has fully agreed to anything.

The statement by Daudzai, President Ghani’s Special Representative on Regional Affairs for Consensus on Peace, came as the Afghan government along with the international community is seeking to re-establish peace in the region.

His remarks come after US Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad announced last week that the US and Taliban have agreed in principle to chalk out a framework for a deal that could end the 17-year old conflict in Afghanistan, during the six-day long talks in Doha.

During a press briefing at the Oval Office in White House on Friday, US President Donald Trump stated that Afghanistan is seeking for "very serious negotiations for the first time" on peace efforts in the past 18 years while adding "there’s a reason for that."

''You even look at what’s going on, and I can’t tell you that this is a guarantee because we’re going into close to 19 years in being in Afghanistan, and for the first time they’re talking about settling,” Trump said.“They’re talking about making an agreement and we bring our people back home if that happens,” Trump added.

Last year in December, Trump abruptly announced his decision to withdraw half of the US troops from Afghanistan.

The New York Times on January 30 reported that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in a letter to Trump had requested for a slow withdrawal of the US forces.