US President Donald Trump on Sunday hailed progress in negotiations on an Afghanistan peace deal, saying that talks with both the Taliban and the Afghan government are going well.

While Trump said the United States has things “under control,” a massive bombing, claimed by the ISIL Takfiri group at a packed Afghan wedding hall in Kabul, killed at least 63 people.

“We’re having very good discussions with the Taliban. We’re having very good discussions with the Afghan government,” Trump told reporters.

Expectations are rising for a deal in which the United States would start withdrawing its soldiers from Afghanistan after nearly two decades of war.

“We have things under control very well with the small force. We can probably make it a little bit smaller and then we’ll decide,” he said, adding: “It’ll depend on the Taliban, it’ll depend on the Afghan government.”

A US-Taliban agreement would not by itself bring an end to Afghanistan’s war, as the insurgents would still need to make a deal with the Washington-backed government in Kabul.

Trump reiterated Sunday that the United States would maintain an intelligence presence in the country even if it withdraws troops, in order to guard against potential militant attacks.

Source: AFP