The Taliban have dismissed President Hamid Karzai's statements that they participated in a peace talk with the government representatives in Kyoto, Japan. Karzai's "brothers" belie him at the time while he told journalists in Tokyo, a day after the international conference on Afghanistan that Qari Din Mohammad, a senior Taliban member met representative of the High Peace Council and expressed readiness for peace talks.

A day after Tokyo conference, the President said, "On release of the Taliban prisoners from Guantanamo bay, it should be said that, "we support it." Three months ago, we sent a delegation to Guantanamo and it interviewed the Taliban prisoners. We want the release of the Taliban prisoners. If they come to Afghanistan, we welcome them and they can go to Qatar and join their families if they so choose."

But the Taliban have released a statement saying that, "We strongly dismiss Karzai's incorrect statements." The statement further reads, "Our representative had travelled to Japan to participate in a research conference in a University and that there was someone representing Kabul government is right but in this research seminar the representative of Islamic Emirate has neither talked to Kabul government representative nor reached an agreement over establishment of a commission concerning the future issues of Afghanistan."

So it is not clear why President Karzai is so eager to make the kind of statements that are promptly rejected by his unhappy brothers. The sad thing is that his brothers not only reject any peace initiative or their willingness to negotiate peace but also continue to kill people and carry out their terrorist activities. The Taliban have carried out many deadly attacks but the government has been busy in a peace process that does not actually exist.

In his address to the conference, President Karzai complained about insecurity as a main hurdle in the way of reconstruction and development of his country but outside the conference he tried to speak for his upset brothers. But the bitter fact is that the President has lost his credibility and popularity among Afghan people and is now trying to impose himself on the Taliban in order to cling to power. President Karzai may believe that the Taliban could be his only target audience, though tough ones.