Two rounds of UN-sponsored talks are held in Geneva, with the UN mediator, Cordovez, acting as liaison between the foreign ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The extension of a unilateral government offer of a cease-fire until January 15, 1988, brings no response, and by August even Kabul, the capital, is threatened as resistance is stepped up.

Najibullah ousts the remaining supporters of former General Secretary Karmal from the Central Committee and the Politburo of the PDPA.

At a meeting of the loya jirga (grand national assembly), Najibullah announces that he will present a revised timetable for the withdrawal of Soviet troops, reduced from 16 months to one year, at UN-sponsored talks scheduled for February 1988.

The constitution also changes the name of the country back to the Republic of Afghanistan and embodies a call for other parties to partake in government alongside the ruling PDPA in an effort to promote national reconciliation.