Washington welcomes the positive role of Russia and China in the Afghan peace process, a senior State Department official told a teleconference for journalists on Friday when speaking about the upcoming US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s trip to Moscow and Sochi on May 12-14.

Axar.az reports citing Russian media.

"We welcome the positive role of Russia, China, and any other country in the Afghan peace process," he said. "(US Special Adviser to Afghanistan Zalmay) Khalilzad has met twice with his Russian and Chinese counterparts. Together they issued a trilateral statement outlining support for the Afghan peace process," the official noted.

Earlier Russia, China and the US called on the Taliban movement (outlawed in Russia) to participate in peace talks with Kabul, following an April 25 meeting between the special envoys of the Russian president, the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the US Department of State in Moscow. The participants of the meeting recognized "the Afghan people’s strong desire for a comprehensive ceasefire, and urged "all parties to agree on immediate and concrete steps to reduce violence."

The sides emphasized that they "support the Afghan government’s efforts to combat international terrorism and extremist organizations in Afghanistan," as well as "take note of the Afghan Taliban’s commitment to fight ISIS and cut ties with Al-Qaeda and other international terrorist groups.".