From the very inception of peace process with Taliban there have been doubts and concerns and they seem to be multiplying with each passing day. When there was announcement of Taliban office in Qatar, there was serious reaction from the Afghan presidential office. The concern was that the Afghan government was being kept separate from the process. When the Afghan government officials started to become calmer, there were concerns raised by the opposition parties and many serious minds among Afghan public.

The opposition parties started calling the process secret and unable to deal with the challenges of time and excluded many important parties within the Afghan society. They demanded that the peace process should be made more transparent and should involve the parties that have been anti-Taliban and deserve to be a party in the process.

They also raised doubts about the softening attitude of the US and Afghan authorities towards the Taliban and possible release of certain Taliban figures who have been involved in mass killing of minorities within Afghanistan. To make the situation more tense there was the announcement by French authorities to withdraw its troops earlier – by the end of 2013.

The European countries that contribute troops in war against terrorism and the US that leads the war are to be affected by the decision to a great extent. Even many within Afghan society started doubting the outcome of the decisions.

They mentioned that earlier withdrawal would mean inviting disorder as Afghan troops and security arrangement are not mature enough to guarantee peace and tranquility. Opposition parties have also mentioned their concerns.

The recent disapproval shown by Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq, in this regard, is worthy to be considered. Showing concerns about the earlier withdrawal announced by troops and attitude towards the peace process and Taliban, he has said, "It is silly to say al Qaeda and Taliban can come together with Afghans, or (with) our allies who have come to this country… I don't believe in a miracle occurring, that the Taliban will change their way of thought, accept the Afghan constitution, believe in democracy and the vote of the people….

When his (President Hamid Karzai's) presidency is over he can go to any place in the world to survive, but the Afghan people will be left behind. What we want is for the international community to act wisely…. We are not very optimistic that the Taliban will join the peace process and other political factions in Afghanistan, support the government and work in a system together."

No doubt early withdrawal by France has intensified the concerns as the French troops withdrawal will certainly create a vacuum which is not easy to fill and may prove detrimental for the overall peace arrangements in Afghanistan. Though, other of the European countries that contribute troops in war against terrorism (like UK, Italy and Germany) have said that they would follow the decided schedule of 2014, it would be very difficult to follow the schedule once the pressure mounts on them too much.

Currently, NATO has also mentioned that it would stick to its transition plan that was decided in 2010. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said, "We stick to the roadmap that was outlined at the NATO summit in Libson in November 2010.

According to which, we will gradually handover lead responsibility to the Afghans. A process that has been started and hopefully will be completed by the end of 2014… The fact is that by mid-2013 we will start the final transition of provinces and districts to lead Afghan responsibility.

So from that time on, the whole Afghanistan will have Afghan security forces in the lead of security. From that time on, we can gradually change the role of our forces from combat to support… The pace and the scope of that transformation of our forces will of course very much depend on the security situation on the ground ... All that will take place within the roadmap we outlined in Lisbon in 2010." It is encouraging that NATO has mentioned that withdrawal will not be made on hasty decisions; however it is yet a promise.

It is important to note that haste, ambiguities and distrust for the reconciliation process will give more advantages to Taliban and they can have a stronger position from where they can negotiate and can have more of their conditions accepted by the US and Afghan authorities.

Though there have been certain conditions set for Taliban to accept before talks can be started with them, it is not yet verified that they have accepted those conditions. The conditions involve the basic demands that Taliban must respect the constitution of Afghanistan; they must give up violence and respect the human rights, most importantly the rights of women.

However, it is difficult to be presumed that Taliban would respect those conditions eagerly. Moreover, the growing distrust among the parties on the other side of the process has made Taliban take advantage of the situation and they have already started dictating their own conditions.

Taliban have said that they would not pursue the condition of ceasefire unless the Taliban prisoners are released from Guantanamo. US had promised that Taliban prisoners would be released once there is a formal ceasefire announced by Taliban. This clearly indicates that Taliban see themselves in a strong position and they think that their condition may be fulfilled.

The peace process is, in fact, going no where but it is interesting to note that US has already started making optimistic conclusions. Obama's recent State of the Union address is very interesting in this regard where he mentioned, "From this position of strength, we have begun to wind down the war in Afghanistan. 10,000 of our troops have come home. 23,000 more will leave by the end of this summer.

This transition to Afghan lead will continue, and we will build an enduring partnership with Afghanistan, so that it is never again a source of attacks against America." US President Obama seems very much confident of fulfilling his promises of withdrawing the forces from Afghanistan and completing the transition process, but he seems to forget that it is not a matter of fulfilling just the promises and gaining the favor of the people for re-election it is a matter of future of Afghanistan and it must be dealt with in accordance to the requirements of time.

The transition in Afghanistan must be conditional and must change in accordance to the situation not on the basis of a strict schedule. It must be dependent on whether the Afghan forces are able to shoulder the responsibility of security of the country appropriately or not.