Afghani president Hamid Karzai has reportedly been holding secret meetings with the Taliban to reach a peace agreement sans the intervention of U.S and other western allies, jeopardizing his relationship with the U.S.
The president's move to reach a deal with the group independently is said to further strain Afghanistan's rapport with the U.S.
Western and Afghan officials on condition of anonymity said that the contact was initiated by the Taliban in November at the time of growing mistrust between Karzai and his allies, the New York Times reported.
Meanwhile, Karzai's secret contact with the Taliban has yielded negligible results.
The White House is apparently not happy with Karzai's reluctance to sign a long-term security agreement with Washington that he himself had brokered.
Jay Carney, the White House press secretary said that the longer there is a delay, the harder it is for NATO and U.S. military forces to plan for a post-2014 presence.