US Taliban to discuss withdrawal timetable of American Forces from Afghanistan
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KABUL - *A senior former member of the Taliban says the U.S. delegation and Taliban representatives are expected to discuss withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in their next meeting.*
A meeting has taken place between a senior U.S. diplomat and Taliban representatives in Doha, capital of Qatar which ended with very positive signals.
According to the report, the meeting has happened between a U.S. delegation led by Alice Wells, deputy assistant secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, and Taliban representatives in a hotel in Doha.
The report noted that the talks had been held without the presence of Afghan government officials.
Citing a Taliban official, Reuters also said that the talks took place with the approval of the leadership council. The two sides had discussed proposals to allow the Taliban free movement in two provinces where they would not be attacked, an idea that President Ashraf Ghani has already rejected. They also discussed Taliban participation in the Afghan government.”
“The only demand they made was to allow their military bases in Afghanistan,” the Taliban official told Reuters.
Following the meeting, Sayed Akbar Agha, a senior former member of the Taliban told Ariana News on Monday that the U.S.-Taliban delegation would discuss the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan and some other key related issues.
“This meeting was the beginning of [the U.S. and Taliban] official meetings. Based on our information, in the next meeting the withdrawal of American forces would be discussed,” he said.
