US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday there was "now hope" for peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, during an unannounced visit to Kabul. Pompeo's first visit to Afghanistan since he was sworn in as America's top diplomat in April came amid renewed optimism for peace in the war-weary country following last month's unprecedented ceasefire by the Taliban and the government.
"An element of the progress is the capacity that we now have to believe that there is now hope," Pompeo told a joint press conference with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. "Many of the Taliban now see that they can't win on the ground militarily. That's very deeply connected to President Trump's strategy," he said, referring to Trump's much-vaunted South Asia policy announced last August. But he added: "Make no mistake, there's still a great deal of work to do."