Pompeo, Ghani agree to 'accelerate efforts' to end war in Afghanistan -State Department

FILE PHOTO: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani accompanied by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks at a news conference at the Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, July 9, 2018. Andrew Harnik/Pool via Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani agreed that it was time to "accelerate efforts" to end the war in Afghanistan, the State Department said on Thursday.

Pompeo and Ghani spoke by phone on Wednesday, the State Department said. Pompeo assured Ghani that the United States remains committed to a conditions-based drawdown of troops, according to the State Department.