U.S.-Taliban Peace Talks Enter Fourth Day in Qatar

The peace talks between the U.S. and Taliban representatives in Doha, the capital of Qatar entered a fourth day on Thursday as the two sides trying to reach on a potential deal to bring an end to the 17-year conflict in Afghanistan.

The details of the meeting have not been officially revealed yet, but the Taliban sources told Ariana News on Thursday that the U.S. and Taliban officials are trying to establish a mechanism for foreign troop pullout.

“As far as Khalilzad was concerned,  to some extent, an agreement has been reached on withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan,” a source close the Taliban said.

The source noted that the two sides also discussed the issue of stability in the region, more specifically to ensure that Afghan territory would not be used for hostile acts against the United States and its allies.  

A  ceasefire to broker reconciliation talks with the Afghan government is also an issue as the U.S. and Taliban were likely to discuss, the second Taliban source told Ariana News.

“When they reached on an agreement over the two issues, a ceasefire will be declared,” the source said.

The High Peace Council (HPC), however, said the Qatar talks were underway without the presence of the government representatives and that they could not afford to agree on every agenda that would come out of these discussions.

A third source close to the Taliban, meanwhile, said that two sides are expected to reveal the outcomes of the Qatar peace talks in a joint statement, adding that the release of some Taliban prisoners would also be one of the outcomes of the meeting.