Taliban Tells Turkey Continued Troop Presence in Afghanistan Is 'Unacceptable'

ISLAMABAD - The Taliban said Friday its leaders already had conveyed to Turkey their opposition to any foreign troops remaining in Afghanistan after the U.S. and NATO forces leave the war-torn country by a September 11 deadline.

The insurgent group’s statement comes a day after U.S. officials said President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed in their meeting Monday that Turkey would continue providing security at the international airport in Kabul, the Afghan capital, following the troop pullout. “The clear commitment from the leaders was established that Turkey would play a lead role in securing Hamid Karzai International Airport, and we are now working through how to execute to get to that," Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, told reporters Thursday. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, when asked for a response to Sullivan’s comments, told VOA that guarding the airports and other locations in the country is the responsibly of Afghans.