Afghan Taliban 3 - Obama/Kerry 0

Well, dear readers - another day and another twist in the bizarre efforts of the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, and his boss, President Obama, to get talks started with the Taliban as the first step in a reconciliation process for Afghanistan. Today it's about a prisoner exchange. The Afghan Taliban are ready to free a US soldier, US Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, 27, held captive since 2009, in exchange for five senior Taliban operatives held at Guantanamo Bay. It would be a conciliatory gesture, a senior Taluban spokesman said on Thursday. The Taliban have consistently requested the release of Khairullah Khairkhwa, a former Taliban governor of Herat, and Mullah Mohammed Fazl, a former top Taliban military commander, both of whom have been held for more than a decade, as well as three others. We learned today that the prisoner exchange is the first item on the Taliban agenda and would be required before any opening peace talks could begin, according to a top Taliban leader, who said the prisoner exchange would build bridges of confidence to go forward. But, US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to be in Qatar ahead of Saturday's conference on the Syrian civil war, and although he will not meet with the Taliban, it may be that lower level meetings will take place. On Wednesday in Washington, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the US had "never confirmed" any specific meeting schedule with Taliban representatives in Doha, the Qatar capital. Such prisoner exchanges have been controversial. Afghan President Karzai once scuttled a similar deal because he felt the Americans were usurping his authority. The current prisoner exchange possibility was raised by senior Taliban spokesman Shaheen Suhail in response to a question during a phone interview with the AP from the militants' newly opened political office in Doha. The US State Department is noncommittal about the proposal, which it said it had expected the Taliban to make. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. "We have not made a decision to ... transfer any Taliban detainees from Guantanamo Bay, but we anticipate, as I've said, that the Taliban will all raise this issue." The American captive, Bergdahl, of Hailey, Idaho, is the only known American soldier held captive from the Afghan war. He disappeared from his base in southeastern Afghanistan on June 30, 2009, and is believed to be held in Pakistan. Suhail said Bergdahl "is, as far as I know, in good condition." ~~~~~ So, let's try to summarize. The US wants to start talks with the enemy Afghan Taliban...but if they do, the American ally in Afghanistan, the government of President Karzai, will not participate. And, Karzai has already halted negotiztions with the US concerning US troop withdrawals and American advisors to continue in the country. But, in a move that seemed unknown to Obama's team, the Taliban went to Qatar and opened an office using their official name during the period when they ruled Afghanistan. So Qatar had to convince them to take dowm their sign and replace it because America and Karzai and the Afghan people were offended. The Taliban complied. But the next day they told AP - not the US, their erstwhile negotiating partner - that before negotiations could begin, a prisoner exchange would be required as an act of good faith. This was unknown to the Americans but the US State Department said it was not unexpected. ~~~~~ Items still to be worked out in the glare of the international media : the color of the team uniforms and the shape of the negotiating table. Do you suppose, dear readers, that a pause is in order - to give the Kerry-Obama side time to brush up on "Negotiating 101" ? Otherwise, America may wake up one morning to find that the Afghan Taliban now own the Washington Monument.