The Taliban rejected charges by the United States that the insurgent group lacks “will or capacity or both” to take steps needed to advance turbulent negotiations between the two foes aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has demanded "demonstrable evidence" from the Taliban that it will lower the violence level in Afghanistan before signing a deal that would lead to peace talks and a withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.
Factions within the Afghan government and Washington differ over whether they are willing to accept a reduction in violence or expect a complete cease-fire in the wake of an agreement between the United States and the Taliban.
A widely anticipated agreement between Afghanistan’s Islamist Taliban movement and the United States is expected to include safeguards to ensure that it leads to ending over four decades of war in the country.
A spokesman for the Taliban has told a Pakistani newspaper that the militant group is hoping to reach a deal with U.S negotiators by the end of January.
A representative of the Taliban says a second day of meetings between the group and a U.S. negotiating team led by Zalmay Khalilzad has been held in Qatar.
The Afghan Taliban has shown "willingness" to reduce violence in Afghanistan, Pakistan's foreign minister has said, calling it a “step toward” a peace deal between the militant group and the United States.
Afghanistan’s government is pushing for a comprehensive cease-fire in the wake of a looming agreement between the Taliban and the United States that will pave way for the withdrawal of American troops and kickstart direct talks between Kabul and the insurgents.
A quarter-century ago, Afghanistan’s hard-line Sunni Taliban movement emerged as a mortal enemy of the Shi’ite clerical regime in neighboring Iran. But amid today’s high U.S.-Iran tensions, Tehran’s influence over the Taliban could sabotage its peace negotiations with Washington.
The Taliban said it believes escalating military tensions between the United States and Iran are unlikely to hurt the insurgent group's negotiations with Washington aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan.
As the Taliban and the United States appear to be on the cusp of a peace deal, Afghanistan needs a lasting cease-fire to create conditions for ending more than four decades of war in the country.
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