*WASHINGTON – *US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to tap ZalmayKhalilzad as his special envoy on Afghanistan, two US officials said, thelatest signal to the Taliban that the United States is serious about talksto end its longest war.

Khalilzad is an Afghan-born former US ambassador to Kabul and Iraq.Thedecision to tap a Republican foreign policy veteran, comes as US militarycommanders acknowledge a stalemate in the fighting and follows a meetinglast month between a US diplomat and Taliban officials to explore possiblenegotiations.

The administration has not officially confirmed those talks. The two USofficials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were unsure whenthe announcement would be made. The White House and the State Departmentdeclined to comment, and Khalilzad did not return messages left with hisoffice.

The outgoing U.S. commander of U.S. and international troops insisted onWednesday that despite a recent wave of violence, Trump’s strategy of anopen-ended deployment of U.S. military advisers, trainers and specialoperations forces and increased air support for Afghan forces is succeeding.

“I believe the strategy is working. … The reconciliation progress issignificant and ultimately wars end with a political ettlement,” said U.S.Army General John Nicholson, commander of the NATO-led Resolute Supportmission. Trump, however, has expressed frustration at the lack of progresstoward a U.S. withdrawal after 17 years of conflict.

In a policy shift during a June ceasefire, Washington said it would“support, facilitate and participate” in any Kabul government-led peacetalks with the Taliban. The surge in Taliban attacks, including an assaultlast week on the provincial capital of Ghazni that took U.S.-backed Afghanforces four days to put down, has raised questions about their interest innegotiations.

Nicholson acknowledged the Afghan government had not significantlyincreased its control over territory. While he said the Taliban have notresponded to an offer this week of a ceasefire from President Ashraf Ghani,two insurgent commanders told Reuters that the insurgents rejected the call.

LONG GOVERNMENT SERVICE

Khalilzad, 67, is well suited to the difficult task of persuading theinsurgents to talk, according to a former senior U.S. official, who askednot to be further identified. In addition to his experience advising orworking for four U.S. administrations and his knowledge of Afghanistan’smain languages, culture and politics, he is from the ethnic Pashtunmajority and is close to Ghani, the former official said. Pompeo’s decisionto tap Khalilzad shows the administration is “serious about getting a peaceprocess going,” said the former official.

One possible drawback for Khalilzad, the former official said, is that hehas been publicly critical of neighboring Pakistan, which Washingtonaccuses of providing sanctuary and support to the Taliban but whosecooperation is crucial to any peace effort. Pakistan denies supporting theTaliban. – Agencies