What Could Shape the Conditions for Dialogue in Afghanistan?

Authors: Aref Dostyar and Zmarai Farahi

This paper asks: Are there ways to use dialogues to advance meaningful political objectives in Afghanistan’s current context? It argues that political engagement should not be limited to pathways offered by the Taliban. Instead, it argues for a multi-layered and decentralized visioning process that expands creative imagination, lays the groundwork for deeper understanding between groups, and, over time, builds functional coalitions capable of positively shaping the underlying conflict dynamics. To develop this idea, it scopes the necessary pre-conditions for an intra-Afghan dialogue process intended to build a vision of the country’s future and a roadmap to get there.

This publication is part of a series highlighting the work and analysis of the Afghanistan Research Network (ARN), a project convened by LSE / PeaceRep, and the Civic Engagement Project (CEP). The network brings together over 20 Afghan researchers (and several non-Afghans) with diverse expertise and backgrounds investigating a range of issues. This project aims to support Afghan researchers who were recently forced to leave Afghanistan; to ensure expert and analytical provision; inform contextually-appropriate international policies and practices on Afghanistan; and to deepen understanding of evolving political, security, and economic dynamics.

Learn more about the Afghanistan Research Network

Browse all Afghanistan research publications