Alice Wells, the US’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, in a tweet said that international aid requires partnership with an inclusive government, referring to Afghanistan.

“We all must hold Afghan leaders accountable to agree on a governing arrangement,” Wells said.

This comes as the dispute between President Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah is still unresolved.

President Ashraf Ghani has publicly proposed that the leadership of the peace council be taken up by his political opponent Abdullah Abdullah, who disputed the recent election results and has announced a parallel government.

The two sides could not reach an agreement when US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Kabul last month and held meetings with both leaders (together and separately). As a consequence, the US announced a $1 billion reduction of its annual aid to Afghanistan but said that the decision will be reviewed if a solution is found to the political impasse.

“You share with Mr. Abdullah the issue that I am suggesting. It is the leadership of the peace process,” Ghani said. “A high peace council should be established and (Dr. Abdullah) should head the high peace council.”

Ghani added: “His (Abdullah’s) protocol can be the protocol of a vice president, his security, his budget, his decision- making, all can be discussed. We have full flexibility.”

Last week in an answer to whether the US would reconsider its $ 1 billion aid cut following the formation of the negotiating team and Abdullah's endorsement, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the US will "constantly re-evaluate" its posture with respect to Afghanistan, with security assistance and humanitarian aid.

He added: “we also announced that we were providing assistance to them to combat COVID. I think the number was 15 million.”