Taliban spokesman Maulvi Umar on Thursday warned tribal elders against meeting US officials, while welcoming ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan’s “refusal” to meet top US officials.“If tribal people do not stop meeting US officials, we will view them as American agents,” the spokesman said in telephone calls to local reporters from an undisclosed location. Key tribal elders from Khyber Agency met US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher in Landikotal on Wednesday. “It [Wali’s refusal] shows that the ANP is sincere in seeking peace in the [Frontier] province,” the spokesman said, while expressing the hope that all problems would be resolved through negotiations. The spokesman praised Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif’s stance in a meeting with the two US officials. Nawaz had met the US officials to tell them that parliament would lay down its own policy, instead of following US directives. However, there has been no confirmation from independent sources about the calls.