Tillerson reiterated the US's commitment to working with Kabul and regional partners to achieve peace in Afghanistan and deny safe havens to terrorists who threaten that goal. He stressed the importance of continuing the fight against the Taliban and said the US military will remain in Afghanistan until it can ensure a negotiation process and peace is not an unlimited commitment. Tillerson said he will call on Pakistan to cooperate in anti-terrorism efforts when he visits Islamabad on Tuesday.

The meeting at Bagram Airfield, the US’s largest base in Afghanistan in northern Kabul, discussed reform programs, the Afghani President’s anti-corruption strategy, and preparations for a parliamentary election in 2018.