Kabul, April 7 -- Afghanistan's presidential adviser Wahid Omar said on Tuesday that the national government was not ready to release Taliban prisoners without conditions, which were a prerequisite for intra-Afghan peace talks.
Taliban spokesman in Qatar, Suhail Shaheen, said earlier in the day that they would not be attending the talks starting on Tuesday after the Afghan government had delayed the release "under one pretext or another.", Urdu Point reported.
Omar said that the government considered the prisoner swap to be a part of the peace process and was ready to talk. He added it was normal for negotiating parties to get frustrated, but said they expected the Taliban to change its mind.
The Taliban and the United States agreed to t...