US envoy Khalilzad discusses Afghan peace talks with Pakistan leadership

US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, who is tasked with finding a negotiated end to Afghanistan’s 17-year war, has arrived in Islamabad. He will meet with the country’s political and military leadership about bringing the Taliban to peace talks. The visit on Tuesday comes a day after President Donald Trump wrote a letter to Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, seeking his cooperation. Khalilzad will also travel to Afghanistan, Russia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Belgium, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar in a stepped-up effort to find a peaceful end to the Afghan war, AP reports. Islamabad says it has little influence on the Taliban, whose leadership is based in Pakistan. However, Pakistan’s leadership says it is ready to play a role for peace in Afghanistan.