The year 2012 has ended. For Afghanistan it was not a different year. Like many other years that have passed, 2012 was also not very happy, as violence continued throughout the country. Bomb blasts, suicide attacks, targeted killings and slaughter of innocent people continued the whole year. Hundreds of civilians and security forces lost their lives at the hands of terrorists.

Meanwhile, the graph of violence against women and children also moved upward. Afghanistan did not lose its position in corruption and continued to remain in the list of most corrupt countries of the world. This country still produces more than 90% of world opium. So 2012 has not been a very different year in Afghanistan.

In the past year, the Afghan government focused on convincing Taliban into table talks in effort to end the conflict in Afghanistan through a political way. But they responded with continuing to practice violence all over the country. They engineered a very sophisticated attack on Assadullah Khalid, the intelligence chief of Afghanistan but he was lucky enough to survive.

In a much unexpected move, the government of Pakistan released 19 Taliban figures from its prisons after a delegation of High Peace Council (HPC) members led by Salahuddin Rabbani paid a visit to Islamabad. Pakistan has released them to push the peace negotiation process of the Afghan government.

Taliban, who until December were denying talking to the Afghan officials, participated in the Paris conference as representatives of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and shared their wants and demands. Bringing Taliban to table has been called a political win for the government of Afghanistan. The Paris conference has created a hope that solving the Afghan issue through negotiation with Taliban is not impossible. Despite that, one should not be overly optimistic as Taliban are not consistent in their policies.

By the end of December, 23,000 American soldiers left Afghanistan. 10,000 US troops had left in 2011. The drawdown process continues and the number of US forces that will leave Afghanistan this year will be announced in the coming days. The withdrawal plan of NATO troops has created a fear among the people of Afghanistan and they think security might deteriorate after 2014.

Another full year, 2013, is ahead of Afghanistan. 2013 will be a crucial and decisive year for the future of Afghanistan. It is expected that there will be more fruitful efforts to end the war in Afghanistan through a peaceful way.