Productive talks in Kabul on peace process: Khalilzad

KABUL reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad on Thursday said he had ‘productive discussions’ with government leaders “on where they are on the Afghan peace process.”

In a tweet, Khalilzad said he met President Aahraf Ghani, Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, and Acting Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani.

He said they focused on next steps in the peace process and added that efforts were underway to form an "inclusive and effective" negotiating team.

In this regard, the Afghan government has requested Khalilzad to stay in Kabul for some days until an inclusive negotiating team is formed.

The Afghan government on Thursday reassured the US special envoy that an inclusive negotiating team will be formed and that only a few people will be making the structure of the team.

Addressing a press conference in Kabul, President Ghani’s spokesman Sediq Sediqqi  said progress had been made with regard to forming an inclusive delegation.

Khalilzad, who arrived in Kabul two days ahead of his next and eighth round of talks with Taliban representatives in Qatar, was due to fly to Doha tomorrow, but the Afghan government has requested him to stay for some time in Kabul.

The request from the Kabul government comes after US President Donald Trump recently made surprising comments about Afghanistan.

During a White House press conference along with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, Trump said Afghanistan "would be wiped off the face of the Earth" if he wanted to win the war.

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