The US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad on Twitter welcomed the Loya Jirga’s declaration and President Ghani’s decision to sign the decree ordering the release of the remaining prisoners.

Khalilzad also said that in "the next few days we expect the completion of prisoner releases, then travel of the Islamic Republic team to Doha, and from there the immediate start of intra-Afghan negotiations.”

“The United States seeks a sovereign, unified, and democratic Afghanistan that is at peace with itself and its neighbors and does not pose a threat to the world. Today, we are one step closer,” he said, adding: “As we have supported the Afghan people for the past 19 years, so do we now support Afghan men and women to achieve the sustainable peace for which they have long yearned.”

In this episode host Nemat Rawan discusses the topic with the following guests:

Tahir Zaland, peace ministry expert

Mahmood Marhoon, university lecturer

Payenda Mohammad Hekmat, political analyst

Qamaruddin Jabarkhail, international security analyst