The State Department said in a statement on Sunday that Khalilzad and his team were visiting Kabul and Qatar. On Monday, Khalilzad discussed the peace process with Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, and he was also expected to meet other Afghan officials. “Development of the peace process, accelerating the process and the assessment of the Doha peace agreement by the US new administration were main topics of the discussion,” said Fraidoon Khwazoon, a spokesman for Abdullah. The Taliban’s deputy leader Sirajuddin Haqqani made a speech on Friday, broadcast on the group’s media channel with excerpts posted on Twitter, warning the United States against going back on a commitment to withdraw. The Taliban has largely denied responsibility for a rash of attacks in Afghanistan since beginning talks with the government in September.

Source: Egypt Independent March 01, 2021 08:03 UTC