2nd LD Writethru: Afghan president meets visiting U.S. security adviser

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani met with visiting U.S. National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster on Sunday, discussing the security situation and bilateral ties, the Afghan Presidential Palace said in a statement.

They also exchanged views on fighting terrorism and reforms and development in Afghanistan during the meeting, said the statement.

McMaster is the highest ranking U.S. official to visit Afghanistan since U.S. President Donald Trump's inauguration in January.

Ghani said during the meeting that Afghanistan stands on the frontline against terrorism and the Afghan security forces are "bravely fighting the menace for the sake of stability and security of the region and world."

The U.S. national security adviser reassured his country's enduring support to Afghanistan.

Earlier on Sunday, McMaster also held talks with Afghan government's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah and his Afghan counterpart Haneef Atmar.

The visit came days after the U.S. military struck an Islamic State (IS) group's hideout with a massive bomb in eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar.

At least 94 IS militants were killed by a GBU-43 or Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) bomb that targeted an IS cave complex on Thursday and the largest non-nuclear bomb also destroyed an IS hideout, three caves as well as 300-meter-long tunnels in the mountainous province bordering Pakistan.

The NATO and U.S. forces completed their combat mission in Afghanistan by the end of 2014, after 13 years of military presence in the country but around 13,000 foreign troops remain in Afghanistan to train and assist local security forces in their fight against the Taliban and the IS. Enditem