MAZAR E-SHARIF, Afghanistan — Noting “breathtaking” progress the Afghan government and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani have made, a senior officer in the Resolute Support mission said there is never going to be a better time for the Taliban to start talking with the Afghan government about peace.

Army Brig. Gen Michael R. Fenzel, the chief of plans for the Resolute Support mission here, said Afghan security forces are a force in being. They do have problems, but they are being addressed, he said. The Afghans’ capabilities today are something he could only imagine during earlier deployments to the country, he added.

It goes beyond purely military aspects, Fenzel said, as the Afghan government is moving against corruption and nepotism and the government is working to replace older, less professional military officers with better-trained and younger ones.

South Asia Strategy