President Trump takes a photo with US troops during a surprise visit at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan, on Thursday, November 28, 2019 (Photo: Reuters)

Trump’s visit was his first to Afghanistan since becoming president and came a week after a prisoner swap between Washington and Kabul that has raised hopes for a long elusive peace deal. Taliban leaders have told Reuters that the group has again been holding meetings with senior US officials in Doha since last weekend, adding they could soon resume formal peace talks. 

Earlier this year, the US reached a deal in principle with the Taliban to pull US troops from the country and wind down the US's longest war in return for security guarantees. But Trump made a reversal in September, describing the year-long talks as "dead", and withdrawing an invitation to the group to meet near Washington after the killing of a US soldier.