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On Monday, US media reported that thousands of US soldiers could be ordered back from Iraq and Afghanistan. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg strongly warned against withdrawing forces from Afghanistan too soon.
– The price of withdrawing too quickly or in an uncoordinated manner can be very high, Stoltenberg said.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who according to CNN now would not order the troops to return from Afghanistan, was fired by Donald Trump last week. Esper’s planned visit to Norway on Thursday, November 19, was thus canceled, TV 2 will be confirmed by the Ministry of Defense.
According to Acting Defense Secretary Christopher C. Miller, the United States must reduce force contributions in Afghanistan and Iraq. US forces are being reduced to 2,500 in each of the countries, Miller announced Tuesday.
– Tett dialogue
– Norway currently has about 90 people in Afghanistan and around 40 people in Iraq. We maintain a close dialogue with our NATO allies on Afghanistan. We follow the principle that we together in Afghanistan and we pull together. In Iraq, we contribute to the American-clad anti-ISIL coalition, says Defense Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen (H) on TV 2.
The Defense Minister says that the Norwegian authorities take a position on Norway’s contribution in a close dialogue with other allies and in light of developments on the ground.
Frank Bakke-Jensen visited Afghanistan in 2018. Photo: Torbjørn Kjosvold / The Armed Forces
– The security of Norwegian forces has the highest priority. From the Norwegian side, we will be concerned that security is maintained responsibly even if the United States implements reductions of the specified magnitude, says Bakke-Jensen and continues:
There are also discussions in NATO about the future of the alliance’s efforts in Afghanistan, but it is too early to say what implications a possible US recession will have for this. The government will maintain dialogue with the United States and other allies, and will closely monitor future development, Defense Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen told TV 2.
The withdrawal of American soldiers will take place until January 15, five days before Joe Biden assumes the presidency.
– Start fires
According to CNN, this is part of a series of actions that Donald Trump will take during the transition period. A source tells the TV station that the Trump administration’s goal is to start so many fires that Biden will find it difficult to put them all out.
The strategy radically breaks with past practice and may create challenges for Biden’s camp, but also have the opposite effect, the channel’s sources say.
A handful of Trump employees and former employees, in sheer frustration, have taken matters into their own hands and secretly contacted Biden’s camp to ensure a smooth transfer of power.
In addition to withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, the Trump administration is also taking these foreign policy measures during the transition period:
- China: According to the Axios website, Trump will use his last ten weeks in the White House to impose sanctions and trade restrictions.
- Iran: Trump considered military strikes on Iran’s most important nuclear facilities, but several advisers have persuaded him not to. However, Trump, who withdrew the United States from the Iran nuclear deal, will impose a series of sanctions that Biden will have a hard time changing.
- Arms sales: In November, the Trump administration gave the green light to sell arms to the Emirates. According to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, $ 23 billion in advanced weapons, including F-35 jets, will better equip the United Arab Emirates to deal with the threat posed by Iran.
- Israel: Pompeo is visiting Israel. On Thursday, he became the first top US diplomat to visit a West Bank settlement. The Palestinians and most of the world community regard the settlements as a violation of international law and an obstacle to peace. Israel and the Emirates, which are among the United States’ closest allies in the region, agreed this fall to full normalization. The agreement means that Israel does not annex parts of the West Bank.
- Yemen: The US secretary of state will label the Shiite Houthi rebel group in Yemen as a terrorist organization, which could create difficulties for Biden later on, as it is not easy to remove a rebel group from the terrorist list, diplomatic sources told CNN.
– Break the rules of the game.
– Break the rules of the game for the transfer of presidential power. This is unlike anything seen before in presidential history, says US commentator Eirik Bergesen of Trump’s strategy.
Bergesen, who was TV 2’s American pundit during the presidential election, says the transition period will be meant to ensure the best possible start for the successor. When George Bush lost major, he left a letter to Bill Clinton in which the message was that he cheered on Clinton on behalf of the nation, Eirik Bergesen notes.
– The mere fact that there is a suspicion that it does not happen, is not good. Nor is it the intention that Trump now spend time on things that Biden must reverse and create problems, Bergesen tells TV 2.
The American commentator recalls that Joe Biden has great challenges ahead. In the United States, there have been more than 250,000 deaths related to the pandemic.
– The pandemic is ravaging the crown and Biden will need a national approach. He won’t have to put out the fires internationally, Bergesen says of the foreign policy hurdles Trump presents for his successor Biden.
