State Department says meeting with senior Taliban leaders was 'candid and professional'

The State Department said that its talks with the Taliban are "candid and professional" just two weeks after Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley said the Taliban is still a terrorist organization.

"The two sides also discussed the United States’ provision of robust humanitarian assistance, directly to the Afghan people," Price added. "The discussions were candid and professional with the U.S. delegation reiterating that the Taliban will be judged on its actions, not only its words."

This is not the first time the Biden administration used similar language to describe the Taliban since the U.S. was forced to abandon its embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. National Security Council Spokeswoman Emily Horne said in a statement last month that the Taliban was being "cooperative" in allowing Americans to depart Afghanistan. She added that they "have shown flexibility, and they have been businesslike and professional in our dealings with them in this effort."