Taliban hopeful of reaching agreement with US in upcoming talks

The Taliban has said that it is hopeful of reaching an agreement with the United States during the crucial round of peace negotiations between the two adversaries slated to be held later this week in Qatar's capital city of Doha.Speaking to Voice of America, Suhail Shaheen, the spokesperson for Taliban's political office in Qatar, said that the two sides have worked hard for nearly one year and almost drafted a text in which they have addressed all major issues. Shaheen added that the Taliban negotiators have done their part and it is now up to the American side whether they have "made up their mind" and take the next step of winding up the dialogue process.On being asked about his expectations for the upcoming meeting, Shaheen said, "We hope to reach an agreement on the troops' withdrawal."The Taliban and the US are getting closer to a deal centred around the latter's promise to withdraw its troops from the war-torn country, in exchange for the guarantee by the former that the Afghan