Biden to Meet With Afghan Officials at White House

U.S. President Joe Biden will meet Friday with Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and chief peacemaker Abdullah Abdullah at the White House.

The first face-to-face interaction between Biden and Afghan officials comes ahead of the withdrawal of the remaining U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan by September 11, in line with Biden’s direction to close what he has described as the "forever war." White House press secretary Jen Psaki said earlier this week that Biden "looks forward to welcoming" the Afghan leaders and will reassure them of U.S. diplomatic, economic and humanitarian support for the turmoil-hit country as the drawdown continues. Ghani and Abdullah arrived Thursday in Washington and met with Senate leaders Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell and other members of Congress.