(The Express Tribune): Last week, we discussed the US perspective on the failure of the Afghan peace deal. In this piece, we will attempt to glean what possibly could be the Taliban position. Generally in the debate and analyses surrounding the deal, very little is known about the Taliban perspective except for some brief statements and postings on their website. The analyst community also bases its assessments on trends, taking the past as a guide. The Taliban rightfully shared the sanguinity about the outcome of the ninth round of the Doha talks and were fairly optimistic — as far as their leadership of the Doha office was concerned — about concluding a deal on their terms through the efforts of a one-time Afghan, the maverick, Zalmay Khalilzad. The process did not fail to owe to the killing of a US soldier in Kabul on September 5 — as was the impression generated by President Trump in his tweets — since violence was never an impediment to the talks on either side. Mike Pompeo himself proudly announced the killing of more than 1,000 Taliban fighters in the 10 days before the deal’s cancellation in incessant operations by the US, that continue. From a distance, the US President abandoned an agreed framework, wherein the Taliban perceptibly conceded very little on their key demands. It appears that adjustments and compromises were made on major issues like a permanent ceasefire, withdrawal timeline of the occupation forces, intra-Afghan dialogue and the Taliban commitment to not allow transnational groups like Al Qaeda, etc to use Afghan soil for attacks against the US.