Germany has proposed that the foreign troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan should be conditioned with the progress in the intra-Afghan talks, rather than on the specific May end deadline this year. 

The comment came from German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. He said the Intra-Afghan talks in Doha won’t be over by May end. He suspects that the Taliban might be waiting for the deadline to end and then will opt for a military solution. 

“Our fear is that the Taliban could use this as a reason to leave the peace talks and seek a military solution,” he was quoted as saying by a German newspaper. NATO will hold its meeting of defense ministers this month. A decision on the future presence of NATO troops in Afghanistan is likely in the meet. 

On the other hand, in a press conference in Iran last week, the Taliban said, "should the foreign troops stay beyond the May deadline, they (Taliban) will deserve a right to defend the country. The statement was a veiled warning that the Taliban would start attacking foreign troops if they stay any longer than May this year. 

Since the US-Taliban agreement, signed on 29 February last year, the Afghan insurgent group has not attacked foreign forces in the country. However, the group stepped up its attacks on the Afghan security forces and continued seeking battlefield advantage during the peace talks. 

Last week, the Taliban also said an Islamic government would replace the Ghani government as a result of the peace process. However, the Afghan National Security Council said it is still premature to talk about the political system.