KABUL (Reuters) – Afghan government representatives arrived in Qatar on Friday ahead of peace talks there with the Taliban, said a spokesman for Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the government’s High Council for National Reconciliation.

Long-awaited peace negotiations are scheduled to begin in Doha on Saturday and follow a U.S. withdrawal agreement Washington signed with the Taliban militant group in February.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is scheduled to attend a ceremony in Doha on Saturday to mark the start of the talks.

(Reporting by Abdul Qadir Sediqi, writing by Alexander Cornwell, Editing by Catherine Evans)

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