U.S. envoy: Fear of Taliban conquering Kabul are overblown By ROBERT BURNS, , AP National Security Writer, Published: May 18, 2021, 6:00pm Share: 2 Photos FILE - In this May 5, 2020 file photo, graffiti depicts Washington's peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, left, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the leader of the Taliban delegation, in Kabul, Afghanistan. After 20 years America is ending its "forever" war in Afghanistan. The U.S. and NATO leave behind an Afghanistan that is at least half run directly or indirectly by the Taliban. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File) Photo Gallery WASHINGTON — Predictions that the Taliban will quickly overrun Afghan government forces and conquer Kabul once U.S. and coalition forces have fully withdrawn are unduly pessimistic, Washington’s special envoy to Afghanistan said Tuesday.