KABUL, Afghanistan, June 21 (UPI) -- Britain's special envoy to Afghanistan, often at odds with NATO and the United States over the conduct of the war with the Taliban, has resigned, officials say.
A spokesman for the British government said Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles has taken an "extended leave," The Guardian reported Monday.
Cowper-Coles has clashed with senior NATO and U.S. officials by insisting the military campaign against the Taliban was destined to fail and that direct talks with the insurgents should be a priority, the newspaper said.
In July, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will host an international conference in Kabul that is expected to focus on the controversial issue of talks with the Taliban.
Cowper-Coles, a career diplomat who has served in Saudi Arabia and in Israel, was U.K. ambassador to Kabul from 2007 to 2009, and was appointed special representative in February 2009.
Cowper-Coles is said to have pushed strongly for the withdrawal of British troops from Afghanistan as early as possible, the Guardian reported.
