Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad is expected to be appointed as Washington’s Special Envoy to Afghanistan, sources told TOLOnews.
 
According to the same sources the announcement is expected to be made next week.
 
Khalilzad will lead the preliminary peace process, sources said. 
 
Along with working for several years in Afghanistan, Khalilzad also served as US’s ambassador to Iraq and to the United Nations.
 
Although the US State Department had a special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, the position was done away with last year. Duties now fall under United States Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells.  
 
Now that Washington has started talks with the Taliban, it appears that it wants to strengthen its efforts in this regard by appointing Zalmai Khalilzad as Washington’s special envoy for Afghanistan, the source said. 

Khalilzad was born in Mazar-e-Sharif and was the United States ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush and has been involved with U.S policy makers at the White House, State Department and Pentagon since the mid-1980s. He has also served as U.S ambassador to Afghanistan and U.S ambassador to Iraq.

Reuters reported that the diplomat is well suited to the difficult task of persuading the insurgents to talk, according to a former senior U.S. official, who asked not to be further identified.

In addition to his experience advising or working for four U.S. administrations and his knowledge of Afghanistan’s main languages, culture and politics, he is close to Ghani, the former official said.