The sooner America’s national security elite accepts that US leverage over the Taliban has eroded, the better its chances of a successful withdrawal - for all parties involved - will be.
Frustration and fear grow over the recent spike in violence and both the Afghan government and Taliban are blaming each other.
Visit comes as Taliban unleashes a wave of deadly attacks in Afghanistan, striking northern Baghlan and southern Uruzgan province.
President Donald Trump and his Democratic contender Joe Biden both seem to have the same fix for Afghanistan.
Taliban orders fighters to observe three-day ceasefire in Afghanistan for Eid al Adha holiday, starting on Friday, as President Ghani says peace talks with insurgents could begin in seven days.
A recent US Department of Defense report indicates that the Taliban continues to hold relations with Al Qaeda, forcing the Trump administration to reconsider its deal with the powerful armed Afghan movement.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appealed to militants to lay down their arms for the holy month of fasting as the country battles the Covid-19 pandemic. The Taliban respond by accusing Kabul of putting prisoners' lives at risk during the outbreak.
Over 18 years after the war began, the accord sets the stage for US troop pullout from Afghanistan. If the deal is successful, the "graveyard of empires" will have once again successfully turned away another world power from its landlocked borders.
Isolated attacks take place, reports say, on first day of "violence reduction period" which if observed successfully will lead to US-Taliban deal and a subsequent pullout of US troops after nearly two decades in country.
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