U.S. Envoy for Afghan Peace Briefs President Ghani on His Regional Trip

According to the President’s Office statement, the meeting was held at the Presidential Palace in the presence of Second Vice President Mohammad Sarwar Danish and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah.
Khalilzad said the U.S. will continue its efforts in the Afghan peace process alongside the Afghan government leadership, the statement said.
Ghani thanked Khalilzad for his briefing and for his efforts in the peace process and said that he welcomes every efforts to ensure lasting peace in Afghanistan.
The statement, however, did not share further details about the meeting.
Khalilzad returned to Kabul after visiting four countries in the region including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
This comes as Taliban in a statement today confirmed that their representatives have met with U.S. delegation led by Zalmay Khalilzad in Qatar and talked about the “end of occupation” and “a peaceful solution in Afghanistan.”
The group in the statement which was released on Saturday said that the head of the Qatar political office Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai and other members of the office including Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi, Shahabuddin Delawar, Qari Deen Mohammad Hanif, Mohammad Zahed Ahmadzai and Mohammad Sohail Shaheen were at the meeting.
According to the statement, the Taliban representatives considered the presence of foreign forces is an “obstacle” in the process of bringing “real” peace in Afghanistan.
The statement added that the Taliban representatives stressed the need for a “real and Afghan-inclusive solution.” The two sides agreed to continue the meetings in the future.