A negotiation involves interaction between two or more conflicting parties intending to resolve the contentious issues. The settlement should be adequate to ensure that all the involved parties are satisfied with the outcome of the negotiation. Several hindrances may limit the success of the conflict resolution process. Among these are the cultural differences between the dissenting parties. Studies show that culture has a significant influence on an individual’s behavior. Therefore, in a negotiation scenario, the conduct of the negotiators is influenced by their cultural background. The recent U.S. - Taliban peace negotiations involving the Taliban Leaders and the United States government provide an adequate illustration of the influence of culture on negotiations.
The conflict between the U.S and the Taliban developed when the United States invaded Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban regime. The invasion was a response by the U.S government after the 9/11 attacks (Maizland, 2020). The Taliban regime was believed to provide a haven to the al-Qaeda militia who had perpetrated the attacks against the United States. The Taliban retreated to Pakistan and continued to wage an uprising against the U.S supported the Afghanistan government (Maizland, 2020). Afghanistan citizens and the U.S military personnel have faced numerous attacks from the Taliban since then, and the country has known no peace for nearly two decades. However, a ceasefire negotiation between the Taliban and the United States government may finally bring peace in Afghanistan. The talks, however, faced several hindrances, including an abrupt cancellation of the peace negotiations by the U.S. President, Donald Trump. Cultural differences between the negotiating parties may have limited the success of the negotiations.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Among the dominant issues raised during the negotiations was the issue of protecting women's rights. The Islamist fundamentalist beliefs of the Taliban disregard the value of women in society. During the Taliban regime, girls were denied access to education, and women were prevented from participating in economic activities (Maizland, 2020). The issue of protecting women's rights and empowering them socially and economically was among the problems that required negotiations. The U.S. officials culturally believed that women have an equal position as men in society while the Taliban leaders held a different view. The difference in cultural beliefs intensified the conflict between the Taliban and the U.S government as the latter tried to empower women in Afghanistan. The influence of the Western culture on Afghanistan citizens is among the reasons the Taliban wanted the U.S troops out of the country. The Taliban also believe that the Afghanistan government has become a puppet of the United States government, resulting from Americans' cultural influence.
The issue of time sensitivity in the negotiations almost crippled the talks between the U.S and the Taliban. The U.S government canceled the discussions until a ceasefire was realized in Afghanistan (Kerami, 2019). The agreed in principle peace agreement required that the Taliban stop the attacks on the Afghanistan government. However, the Taliban had not effected the deal, and the U.S government was becoming impatient. Studies show that Americans are highly sensitive to time, unlike most Asians (Bornstein, 2003). Therefore, the U.S government was more likely to become impatient with the negotiations if no progress was made. This cultural difference significantly limited the success of the talks.
Cultural sensitivity during negotiations is a significant aspect that can help to resolve intergroup conflict. It requires the negotiators to be aware of their opponents' culture, thus improve cultural responsiveness during a conflict resolution. For instance, in the U.S – Taliban negotiations, it was vital for the negotiators to understand and appreciate the other party's cultural beliefs and values. This would have created a neutral negotiation ground independent of cultural influence. In this scenario, I would apply cultural sensitivity and ensure that the parties agree on the time limits to implement the agreed-upon resolutions. This would allow both parties to compromise on time to complete the conflict resolution. I would also encourage each party to learn about the opponent's culture before the negotiations. This would improve the cultural responsiveness of both parties at the negotiation table.
References
Bornstein, G. (2003). Intergroup conflict: Individual, group, and collective interests. Personality and social psychology review , 7 (2), 129-145.
Kerami, K. (2019, September 25). Afghanistan: Failure of US-Taliban peace talks looms over elections . The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/afghanistan-failure-of-us-taliban-peace-talks-looms-over-elections-123713
Maizland, L. (2020, March 2). U.S.-Taliban peace deal: What to know . Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/us-taliban-peace-deal-agreement-afghanistan-war
