KABUL – *A senior former member of the Taliban says the U.S. delegation andTaliban representatives are expected to discuss withdrawal of Americantroops from Afghanistan in their next meeting.*
A meeting has taken place between a senior U.S. diplomat and Talibanrepresentatives in Doha, capital of Qatar which ended with very positivesignals.
According to the report, the meeting has happened between a U.S. delegationled by Alice Wells, deputy assistant secretary in the State Department’sBureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, and Taliban representatives in ahotel in Doha.
The report noted that the talks had been held without the presence ofAfghan government officials.
Citing a Taliban official, Reuters also said that the talks took placewith the approval of the leadership council. The two sides had discussedproposals to allow the Taliban free movement in two provinces where theywould not be attacked, an idea that President Ashraf Ghani has alreadyrejected. They also discussed Taliban participation in the Afghangovernment.”
“The only demand they made was to allow their military bases inAfghanistan,” the Taliban official told Reuters.
Following the meeting, Sayed Akbar Agha, a senior former member of theTaliban told Ariana News on Monday that the U.S.-Taliban delegation woulddiscuss the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan and some otherkey related issues.
“This meeting was the beginning of [the U.S. and Taliban] officialmeetings. Based on our information, in the next meeting the withdrawal ofAmerican forces would be discussed,” he said.