Khalilzad arrives in Islamabad, seeks revival of Afghan peace process

• Khalilzad will meet Foreign Office officials over resumption of the peace process.
• On October 27, Khalilzad met President Ashraf Ghani and informed him on his recent meetings with top officials in Moscow.
• Before the U.S.-Taliban talks broke off, both sides said they were close to reaching a deal.

(Karachi) U.S. President Donald Trump's top negotiator for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad arrived for discussions with Pakistan's civil and military leadership on reviving peace talks with Afghan Taliban, media reported on Monday.

During his visit, Khalilzad will meet the Foreign Office officials over resumption of the peace process.

On October 27, Khalilzad met with top Afghan officials, including President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul.

Afghan officials said the aim of Khalilzad’s visit was to inform President Ghani on his recent meetings with top officials in Moscow and other countries regarding the Afghan peace process.

Talks with the Taliban on a plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan in exchange for Taliban security guarantees were halted by Trump last month following the death of a U.S. soldier and 11 other people in a Taliban bomb attack in Kabul.

Before the U.S.-Taliban talks broke off, both sides said they were close to reaching a deal, despite concerns among some U.S. security officials and Afghan government officials that a U.S. withdrawal could bring more conflict and a resurgence of Islamist militant factions.

The Taliban have refused to talk to Ghani's government, denouncing it as a U.S. puppet.

Khalilzad had been pressing the Taliban to declare a ceasefire with Afghan government forces and make a commitment to power-sharing talks. The Taliban said that would follow a deal on the withdrawal of all foreign forces.

The Taliban were ready to stand by the tentative agreement struck before Trump cancelled the talks, according to Pakistani officials and militant group sources, who said the insurgents were eager to resume negotiations.

Trump too, despite calling off the talks, is keen to end U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, which began weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.