Trump speaks with senior Taliban leader by phone, in a first between a U.S. president and insurgent force since Afghan war began

President Trump said Tuesday that he had spoken with the senior Taliban leader, a phone conversation that is apparently the first direct verbal communication between a U.S. president and the Afghan insurgent force since the more than 18-year-old war in Afghanistan began.

Trump confirmed the Taliban’s announcement Tuesday that he had spoken by phone with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s top political leader.

“I spoke to the leader of the Taliban today. We had a good conversation. We’ve agreed there’s no violence, we don’t want violence; we’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They’re dealing with Afghanistan, but we’ll see what happens. We had actually a very good talk.” Continue reading.