The Defense Department announced Tuesday that US troops withdrew from five military bases and reduced the size of their forces in Afghanistan as part of the deal reached with the Taliban in February.
Pentagon chief spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement that “US forces in Afghanistan remain in the mid-8,000s and five bases previously occupied by US forces have been transferred to our Afghan partners.”
“We maintain the capabilities and authorities necessary to protect ourselves, our allies and partners, and the national interests of the United States,” said Hoffman. “We will continue to execute our counter-terrorism mission while simultaneously supporting the 38-nation NATO Resolute Support Train, the Advisory, Assistance and Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) mission as they work to secure peace in the country.”
The United States and the Taliban earlier this year signed a landmark agreement aiming to end what has become America’s longest war. The United States agreed to a troop reduction in exchange for the Taliban’s commitment that Afghanistan will not be used by terrorists to attack the United States.
The deal required the United States to complete its withdrawal from the country within 14 months if the Taliban complied with the deal, which includes commitments to counterterrorism and intra-Afghan negotiations. However, the negotiations have generated uncertainty, amid the recent attacks by the Taliban and the two sides hung by the number of prisoners they intend to release.
Data provided to the Pentagon’s Special Inspector General for the Reconstruction of Afghanistan showed that the Taliban increased their attacks on U.S. allies in Afghanistan in the month after the deal was signed, according to a CNN report in early May.
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