In Afghanistan, the cables also show the United States is actively opposing an eventual peace agreement that could bring top Taliban leaders into the Afghan government. The United States has publicly claimed it backs reconciliation talks with the Taliban. But one cable cites Richard Holbrooke, U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, as saying, “There will be no power-sharing with elements of the Taliban.” News of the U.S. stance comes just as a new poll of Afghan public opinion shows that although the Taliban remains unpopular, 73 percent of Afghans would support a negotiated settlement.