Military officials and diplomats are skeptical, awaiting the outcome of ongoing peace talks between the Trump administration and the Taliban, and urge extreme caution before signing any agreement to end the 18-year US war in Afghanistan.

US officials said last week they had reached an agreement in principle with the Taliban, whereby 5,400 of the 14,000 US troops would return home immediately, in return for assurances from the armed group that Afghanistan would no longer be a safe haven for terrorists. . Five US bases will be closed within five months of signing the agreement.

The move will deliver a tremendous promise from Trump in the campaign years ago. He has long pledged to withdraw his country from "endless wars," although it was unclear when and under what circumstances the remaining US and foreign troops would leave.

But the talks, led by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, have left some key stakeholders on the sidelines. Khalilzad only briefed the US-backed Afghan government in Kabul over the weekend on the initial deal; Trump has yet to sign the deal. US military officials have seen little evidence of the multiple rounds of US talks with the Taliban conducted by Khalilzad over the past year.

Pentagon officials largely avoided discussing the details of the deal publicly, leaving it to the State Department.

In particular, current and former military officials acknowledge uncertainty about whether the Taliban will keep their promises to cut ties with extremist groups, such as al-Qaeda, and cancel their military campaign against the Kabul government.

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper held a secret meeting at the White House on Tuesday night, and White House aides said the Afghanistan deal would be part of the debate. Esber issued a public statement on the Taliban talks, but did not disclose what was negotiated. Former US diplomats who worked in Afghanistan said they supported the administration's ultimate goal.

"It is not clear whether peace is possible," former diplomats wrote in a letter posted on the Atlantic Council last week. "The Taliban have not made any clear statements about the conditions they might accept for a peaceful settlement with their Afghan citizens, and they have no track record of working with other political forces." Former Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and former Ambassador to Afghanistan William Wood were among those who signed the letter.

As details of the deal are scarce, many fear that Trump's desire to end the war runs counter to facts on the ground. Marvin Weinbaum, director of Afghanistan and Pakistan studies at the Middle East Institute, wrote that the fledgling agreement appeared to make "a few concessions by the Taliban." But it did not budge from its refusal to include representatives of the Kabul government in the negotiations ». "The most problematic is that Washington has received in good faith the Taliban's pledge to sever ties with al-Qaeda and to deny terrorist organizations the opportunity to operate from Afghan territory," he said.

Current and former military officials acknowledge uncertainty about whether the Taliban will keep their promises to cut ties with extremist groups.