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Khalilzad Says U.S. Should Have Negotiated Taliban Deal

By Drooid · Sep 12, 2026, 6:44 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Khalilzad Calls Negotiations

Former U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said the United States should have negotiated with the Taliban after 2001.
He noted that post-9/11 anger pushed the U.S. to launch the Afghanistan invasion within a month.
Khalilzad recalled the Taliban offered a deal in early 2001, which the United States rejected.
On September 7, 2026 he oversaw a $200 million Saudi-Taliban energy extraction contract for seven Kushk-Tirpul blocks.

Summary

Saudi Pipeline Deal

Saudi Arabia and the Taliban signed a deal to build a 700-kilometre gas pipeline across western Afghanistan.
Pakistan warned the Saudi investment could embolden groups that attack its territory.
Riyadh is deepening strategic and military ties with Islamabad despite the pipeline project.
The U.S. State Department reiterated the Taliban remain a Specially Designated Global Terrorist group.

History

Historical Context

In 2001, after the September 11 attacks, the United States launched Operation Enduring Freedom, and its toppling of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The Bush administration allocated $12 billion to reconstruction, while the United Nations reported 1.7 million displaced Afghans by year-end, straining humanitarian aid. Similarly, today Saudi Arabia and the Taliban negotiate a 700-kilometre gas pipeline, with Zalmay Khalilzad overseeing a $200 million Saudi-Taliban extraction contract. These deals risk reshaping regional international power balances, prompting Pakistan’s security warnings and the U.S. State Department to maintain the Taliban’s terrorist designation.

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Khalilzad Calls Negotiations

Former U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said the United States should have negotiated with the Taliban after 2001.
He noted that post-9/11 anger pushed the U.S. to launch the Afghanistan invasion within a month.
Khalilzad recalled the Taliban offered a deal in early 2001, which the United States rejected.
On September 7, 2026 he oversaw a $200 million Saudi-Taliban energy extraction contract for seven Kushk-Tirpul blocks.

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