Progress in US-Taliban talks for withdrawal from Afghanistan
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US negotiators have made significant advances in recent talks with the Taliban, and the two sides are close to announcing an agreement on an initial U.S. troop withdrawal, along with plans to start direct discussions between the militants and the Afghan government, according to American and foreign officials.
President Trump met Friday with Cabinet officials and other senior national security advisers for a briefing by Zalmay Khalilzad, the chief U.S. envoy to the talks. Attendees at the meeting, held at Trump’s New Jersey golf resort, included Vice President Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Joseph F. Dunford Jr., CIA Director Gina Haspel and White House national security adviser John Bolton.
An initial withdrawal under the proposed deal would include roughly 5,000 of the 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. In exchange, the Taliban would agree to renounce al-Qaeda and to bar it from activities such as fundraising, recruiting, training and operational planning in areas under Taliban control.
A statement after the meeting offered no details, with Hogan
Gidley, the principal deputy White House press secretary, saying only that “discussions centered around our ongoing negotiations and eventual peace and reconciliation agreement with the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan.”
“The meeting went very well,” Gidley said.
In an evening tweet, Trump called the meeting “very good” and wrote, “Many on the opposite side of this 19 year war, and us, are looking to make a deal – if possible!”
Earlier, a White House official cautioned that it might not immediately result in a decision or an announcement.
In addition to the withdrawal, the agreement is expected to include a statement of Taliban willingness to sit down with representatives of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s government to develop a political framework for peace, something that has long been a sticking point in the U.S.-Taliban talks.
