Trump: I invited Taliban to Camp David, but canceled after they killed a US soldier
WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Trump on Saturday said that he had canceled a secret meeting with "major Taliban leaders" at Camp David that he said had been scheduled for Sunday.
"They were coming to the United States tonight," he tweeted.
Trump said via Twitter that "they admitted to an attack in Kabul that killed one of our great great soldiers, and 11 other people. I immediately cancelled the meeting and called off peace negotiations."
"If they cannot agree to a ceasefire during these very important peace talks, and would even kill 12 innocent people, then they probably don’t have the power to negotiate a meaningful agreement anyway. How many more decades are they willing to fight?" Trump tweeted.
Trump also said the president of Afghanistan was also coming to the secret meeting at Camp David.
The soldier referenced in the president's tweets was apparently Sgt. 1st Class Elis Angel Barreto Ortiz of Puerto Rico. The 34-years-old recipient of the Purple Heart and Bronze Star Medal was killed in Afghanistan on Thursday.
Trump has been under pressure from the Afghan government, lawmakers and some members of his administration who mistrust the Taliban and think it's too early to withdraw American forces. The administration's diplomat talking to the Taliban leaders for months in recent days said he was on the "threshold" of an agreement with the Taliban aimed at ending America's longest war.
The U.S. envoy negotiating with the Taliban, Zalmay Khalilzad, abruptly returned to Qatar late last week for unexpected talks with the insurgents on the deal that he had described as complete just days earlier. Khalilzad said last Monday that the agreement "in principle" to begin a U.S. troop withdrawal only needed Trump's approval.
There was no immediate statement from the Afghanistan government.
This story was reported from Chicago. The Associated Press contributed to this report.