U.S. Envoy, Taliban Discuss Peace, While Afghan Government Is Sidelined
Islamist group refuses opportunity to engage with Kabul representatives on effort to end 17-year war, as April presidential election looms
While U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad held talks with a high-level Taliban delegation in one hotel in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, representatives of the Afghan government stewed in another, waiting for a summons to hold indirect talks with the Taliban officials.
By late evening, the government officials were still waiting, said a person attending the latest round of discussions aimed at paving the way for a negotiated settlement of the 17-year Afghan war.
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