Mark Esper says US troop levels in Afghanistan will fall below 5,000 by the end of November

08/09/2020 USA


“We are going to number less than 5,000 by the end of November,” Esper said in an interview with Fox News.

Esper said the Pentagon should still inform members of Congress about the plan, and should also ensure that the “United States is not threatened by terrorists coming from Afghanistan.”

In an interview with Axios last week, President Donald Trump said he would “probably want anywhere from 4,000 to 5,000” troops in Afghanistan by the time of the November 3 election.

CNN reported in June that the administration had finalized plans to reduce the number of troops from the current level from 8,600 to about 4,500, a figure that would be the lowest since the worst days of the war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001. .

Esper’s confirmation of a major firing comes amid continuing deadly Taliban attacks against the Afghan government, despite the insurgent group signing an agreement with the US in February.

The Pentagon also said in a report last month that the Taliban had not yet broken with al-Qaida despite the Trump administration saying such a breach was a major achievement of its deal with the Taliban.

Despite the lack of progress, on Thursday a Pentagon spokesman said while the president’s leadership was clear, any future “conditions would be based”.

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