“The United States' policy has always been rather schizophrenic in the Middle East because there are a lot of Zionist influences driving US policy,” former US congressional staffer, Rodney Martin, said in an interview with Press TV.

He pointed to the recent release of a US soldier in exchange for five Taliban leaders and emphasized that the Taliban is not the entity that is often referred to as al-Qaeda; rather it was the government of Afghanistan in the 1990s.

The five Taliban prisoners were transferred to Qatar on Sunday as part of a secret deal to free the 28-year-old Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, held captive in Afghanistan for five years.

Martin noted that Qatar has been playing an “interesting role in the geopolitical situation” on behalf of the United States.

“I think the best situation is for Qatar to act on behalf of its interests only and not acting as a broker in these types of arrangements,” the commentator pointed out.

The Afghan government says it was never informed by the US administration about the negotiation and has criticized Washington for transferring the freed Taliban prisoners to Qatar.

The Afghan Foreign Ministry described the transfer of former Taliban detainees to a third country as against the international law.

Relations between Kabul and Washington have been severely strained in recent years over several issues related to Afghan sovereignty.