EIR LEAD EDITORIAL FOR MONDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2021

Diplomacy Proceeds on Afghanistan, What’s Needed Is Action

Oct. 17, 2021 (EIRNS)—There are potentially significant diplomatic initiatives this week regarding Afghanistan and Central Asia. The challenge is, action. Hussein Askary, Schiller Institute Coordinator for Southwest Asia began his presentation at the Schiller Institute Conference in Denmark on Oct. 11 in Copenhagen, saying to the international diplomats and others participating in person and livestream, “We are not here to analyze things, we are here to start a development process, which Mrs. Helga Zepp-LaRouche, the Chairwoman of our Schiller Institute, launched already in July, even before the Taliban took over, because she realized that the end of the game has come, and that there’s a new paradigm that should replace the old, failed paradigm, as everybody could see for themselves.”

The line-up of this week’s activity is centered in Moscow. On Wednesday, Oct. 20, is what is called the Moscow format meeting on Afghanistan, to which a group of countries are invited. The Afghan Taliban delegation is confirmed. India confirmed on Oct. 15 that it will send a delegation. The Moscow format was begun in 2017, and involves a six-nation mechanism for consultations—Russia, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Iran and India.

On Oct. 19 in Moscow, there are prior discussions planned on Afghanistan for the Troika-plus one—Russia, the United States, China and Pakistan. Speaking of this meeting, Russian Special Presidential Representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov said on Oct. 15 that this “expanded troika” is intended to be, “where we will try to work out a common position on the changing situation in Afghanistan.” However, Kabulov said that Moscow still had not heard if the U.S. would attend. The Russians questioned whether U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad might come.

Later the same day, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price again expressed the U.S. stance of non-decision, saying, “We have taken note of the upcoming session in Moscow, but we don’t have any meetings or participation to confirm on our end.” This is worse than not promising, but par for the course taken since (and before) the U.S. and NATO withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan. The State Department’s stance remains within the deadly old paradigm of non-collaboration, confrontation and killer economic policies. Ned Price reiterated on Oct. 14, that the U.S. was not releasing the assets of the Afghanistan nation, because, he asserted, the Taliban has to meet conditionalities.

The role of the Schiller Institute remains crucial in this crisis situation, with the range of its many initiatives—statements, programs, events, Day of Action, and especially the upcoming international youth meeting with Helga Zepp-LaRouche on Oct. 23, all of which further the dialogue and commitment to take action for the “development process,” as Askary identified.

The situation in Afghanistan is more critical by the hour, with the onset of winter, and the need for fuel and protection, as well as food. On Oct. 15, World Food Day, World Food Program Executive Director David Beasley took the occasion to not only stress action for relief to millions of Afghans, but he spoke of the growing international need. He said that 42 million people in 43 countries are “one small step from famine.”

The necessity to meet this need points up our two urgent, historic tasks: to put an end to the Green Assault, and to restore economic functioning. On the good news front, the COP26 Summit prospects are dimming every day, headed to be a flop, if not cancelled. Only the glitterati-greenies are enthusiastic. Boris Johnson is taking the heat for the pending fizzle. In September he hobnobbed in the U.S. and bragged to the UN General Assembly that (Global) Britain’s COP26 would be a “turning point for humanity.” The London Observer’s chief political editor complained about BoJo this weekend, “Having promised he could save the world, there’s very little time left to rescue this critical summit from failure.”

The biggest blow to the COP26 operation, is the reality factor now evident to multimillions of people, that today’s hyperinflationary breakdown process is tied to the green insanity, and deliberate impoverishment from the Wall Street/City of London dead system. The daily shortages and outages are like a Doomsday Watch on the whole system. The upcoming Schiller Institute international conference Nov. 13-14, will directly address how to bury the green operation, and launch the “development process.” Plan to attend, and spread the word.