KABUL (SW) – The U.S. President Donald Trump met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani during a surprise visit to Afghanistan to celebrate Thanksgiving with American troops.
"The Taliban wants to make a deal, and we’re meeting with them," Trump said in a meeting with his Afghan counterpart President Ashraf Ghani during his visit at the Bagram Airfield, according to The New York Times. "The Taliban wants to make a deal – we’ll see if they make a deal. If they do, they do, and if they don’t they don’t. That’s fine," he added.
Speaking on the occasion, his counterpart in Kabul, Ashraf Ghani said the Afghan forces are on the forefront in the war against Deash and al-Qaeda terrorists. A statement by the presidency in Kabul said the two leaders agreed in a meeting that if the Taliban are ready for a peace deal, they should ceasefire, and they also agreed upon the need to remove sanctuaries of terrorists outside the country for a sustainable peace in Afghanistan.
Addressing the U.S. soldiers deployed in Afghanistan for the nation’s longest-running war, Trump thanked them for their service. "There's nowhere I'd rather spend Thanksgiving than with the toughest, fiercest warriors. I'm here to say Happy Thanksgiving and thank you very much. As president of the United States, I have no higher honor than serving as commander-in-chief," he added during his stay at the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan.
"We will continue to work tirelessly for the day when all of you can go home to your families, and that day is coming very soon," the president said.
Trump was accompanied by White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham, acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, White House Deputy Press Secretary Judd Deere and Senator John Barrasso.
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