No Talking to Taliban: Trump Affirms US Commitment to Afghanistan

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The United States does not want to talk to the Taliban, President Donald Trump said during a lunch with the UN Security Council on Monday.

"We don’t want to talk to the Taliban," Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that the UN Security Council would discuss the situation in Syria, Iran, North Korea, Afghanistan, as well as countering terrorism during their session, took the form of a working lunch.

The US president took part in the UNSC meeting, including Russian representative Vassily Nebenzia, the White House press service reported.

Speaking at the White House, Trump said, "We're going to finish what we have to finish" in Afghanistan. US President said that "innocent people are being killed left and right," including children, and stressed that "there's no talking to the Taliban."

Kabul in recent weeks has been hit by several deadly assaults, including a massive suicide car bombing in a crowded central area on January 27 that reportedly killed dozens of people and was claimed by the Taliban. Moreover, earlier this month, several US citizens were killed and injured in the siege of a Kabul Intercontinental hotel by the Taliban.

Following that attack, Trump called for "decisive action" by all countries against the Taliban, saying in a statement that the "murderous attack renews our resolve and that of our Afghan partners."