A fresh round of talks between the US and the Taliban began in Qatar on Saturday, days after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington is hoping for an Afghan peace agreement before Sept. 1.

As in previous talks between Khalilzad and the Taliban, the focus is on the withdrawal of US troops and Taliban guarantees to prevent Afghanistan from again hosting militants who can stage global attacks. Both sides say they have come to an understanding on the withdrawal and the guarantees, but details have yet to be worked out.

Saturday marked the seventh sit-down between the two sides, which have held a series of direct talks that began last year following the appointment of US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad.

In the Afghan capital of Kabul last week, Pompeo said “real progress” had been made on a draft agreement with the Taliban to ensure “that Afghan soil never again becomes a safe haven for terrorists.”

Both Khalilzad and Pompeo have said that agreements with the Taliban will come hand in hand with understandings on an intra-Afghan dialogue and a permanent cease-fire. It was expected that a timetable would be among the discussion points in the Doha talks.

The latest round of talks comes amid heightened expectations that followed Pompeo’s optimistic time frame for a pact to end Afghanistan’s nearly 18-year war — America’s longest-running military engagement.

Also on Saturday, Afghan authorities accused the Taliban of killing at least 25 pro-government forces in the northern Baghlan province. The Taliban, who have stepped up attacks in recent months against Afghanistan’s beleaguered national security personnel, said the attacks were retaliation for earlier attacks on their fighters.