A historic meeting between the Afghan government and the Taliban insurgency to negotiate the end of two decades of war in the country began on Saturday.
After months of delays, the Afghan delegation, led by Dr Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of National Reconciliation Council, met the Taliban leadership led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, in person for the first time since the extremist regime was deposed during the US invasion in 2001.
An assortment of global leaders, representing regional and global stakeholders, including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, expressed optimism about the talks in their opening remarks.
“A landmark achievement of the US-Taliban agreement was setting the stage for these negotiations,” Mr Pompeo said, referring to the deal between the US administration and the Taliban made earlier this year that has facilitated the ongoing withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.
“We urge you to make decisions that move away from the violence and the corruption and towards peace and development and prosperity,” he said.
Dr Abdullah reiterated similar optimism and thanked the Taliban for “responding positively” to the talks.
“I can tell you with confidence that history will remember today as the end of the war and suffering of our people. The current conflict has no winner, but there will be no loser if the crisis is resolved through submission to the will of the people,” he said. The Taliban leader responded with a short assurance that they intended to continue the talks with “full honesty to pave the ground for peace”.
However, for those following the conflict closely, much was said in the few short opening remarks that they have heard before. “These were ceremonial speeches, and we are so familiar with the tone and references they use,” said Orzala Nemat, director of the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU), who has been tracking the peace efforts for many years.
“The key is in what happens next. If all sides are genuine about bringing the conflict to an end, they need to prioritise the ceasefire,” she said.
“A lot of speeches mentioned the ceasefire but I don’t think I heard enough about the ceasefire from the Taliban delegations,” she added.
While the Taliban expressed willingness to discuss the ceasefire, there has been no concrete commitment provided by the militant group about ending the war. “The Taliban will not accept a ceasefire under the current government but will instead ask for it under a new political structure - an acting or caretaker government,” Faiz Zaland, a political analyst who is currently participating in the Doha talks as an observer, said.
“They will agree to a ceasefire in exchange for an interim government where they can see themselves as part of the future of Afghanistan. They are expecting to take concrete decisions that will go beyond a ceasefire and the end of the war,” he said.
But Ms Nemat said the call for a ceasefire had been made many times before without success. “They talked about being patient but while we appreciate being patient with talks, we cannot be patient with losses of human lives,” Ms Nemat said, adding that the ceasefire was crucial to the success of the talks.
Her views were reflected among the Afghan public, many of whom watched the ceremony with much anticipation. “I am hoping all the parties agree to a ceasefire and reach an agreement where we can live in peace. We are tired of the war and killings,” said Javid Safi, a 32-year-old NGO worker from the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif.
Mr Safi’s neighbourhood has been closely following the talks, and “is the topic of every dining table conversation”.
“Everywhere you go, this is what all Afghans are talking about. It is evident we are eager and thirsty for peace,” he said.
Both Abdullah and Baradar stressed the importance of defining the Islamic nature of Afghanistan in their remarks. While the Afghan leader maintained legitimacy of the system based on the constitution, the Taliban sought to establish a new Islamic system - a matter that is likely to create friction in the coming days.
“Afghanistan did not newly adopt Islamic government during the Taliban regime; we have been an Islamic nation for a very long period of time. What they are demanding is problematic because they have their own interpretation of Islam,” Ms Nemat pointed out.
Mr Zaland agreed that it is likely that the Taliban may oppose some “extreme freedoms which aren’t in accordance with Sharia”. However, he did not believe the issue will create a dispute.
“Concerns that the Taliban will return to the strict format of the Islamic government of 1990s are unfounded because even they admit there were mistakes in some interpretations and applications and it will not be repeated. Islamic governance will be defined by the Ulemas on both sides,” he added.
However, those like Mr Safi remain very cautious of the ideological rift within the Taliban. “From what I know and hear there are two types of Taliban, the ones that are in Qatar and another group that are fighting here. I don’t think all Taliban have changed, some are still fighting for the old Emirate,” he added.
“We want the violence to end, but not at the cost of the values of the last 20 years—human rights, education and freedoms.”
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Vaccine Progress in the Middle East
Non-oil%20trade
%3Cp%3ENon-oil%20trade%20between%20the%20UAE%20and%20Japan%20grew%20by%2034%20per%20cent%20over%20the%20past%20two%20years%2C%20according%20to%20data%20from%20the%20Federal%20Competitiveness%20and%20Statistics%20Centre.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%2010%20years%2C%20it%20has%20reached%20a%20total%20of%20Dh524.4%20billion.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ECars%20topped%20the%20list%20of%20the%20top%20five%20commodities%20re-exported%20to%20Japan%20in%202022%2C%20with%20a%20value%20of%20Dh1.3%20billion.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EJewellery%20and%20ornaments%20amounted%20to%20Dh150%20million%20while%20precious%20metal%20scraps%20amounted%20to%20Dh105%20million.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERaw%20aluminium%20was%20ranked%20first%20among%20the%20top%20five%20commodities%20exported%20to%20Japan.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETop%20of%20the%20list%20of%20commodities%20imported%20from%20Japan%20in%202022%20was%20cars%2C%20with%20a%20value%20of%20Dh20.08%20billion.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
