The president of the United States, Donald Trump, said Monday that negotiations with the Taliban are “dead” as far as he is concerned, as reported by the local newspaper ‘The Hill’.
However, the leader has defended his initial position of holding a secret meeting with the Taliban leaders in Camp David – a meeting that was canceled after the Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Kabul.
“I liked the idea of the meeting. I have met a lot of bad people and good people over the past three years. I think that meeting is a great thing,” he said during a press conference at the White House. “However, wars will not end,” he said.
“I was scheduled to meet. That was my idea, and it was my idea to suspend the meeting,” explained the New York tycoon.
In this regard, Trump said that “he did not discuss the matter with anyone”, but simply “when he learned that they had killed an American soldier and twelve other innocent people I knew it was a mistake.”
On Sunday, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, ratified for his part that the talks with the Taliban are “dead” and warned that they will maintain pressure on the Afghan insurgents and will continue to support the Army until the Taliban commit themselves to the peace.
Pompeo explained in statements on the Fox News network that they have ordered the return to the special envoy for Afghanistan, Zalmay Jalilzad, and when asked if the talks are “dead,” he replied that “they are for the moment.” Europa Press
