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WASHINGTON: All US troops in Afghanistan should be “home by Christmas,” President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (October 7), just hours after his national security adviser said Washington would reduce its forces in Afghanistan to 2,500. by the beginning of next year.
A landmark agreement between the United States and the Taliban in February said foreign forces would leave Afghanistan in May 2021 in exchange for counterterrorism guarantees from the Taliban, who agreed to negotiate a permanent ceasefire and power-sharing formula with the Afghan government. .
Trump and other officials have said the United States will drop to between 4,000 and 5,000 troops in Afghanistan around November.
Beyond that, officials have said a reduction will depend on conditions in Afghanistan.
On Twitter, Trump said: “We should have the small remaining number of our BRAVE Men and Women serving in Afghanistan by Christmas!”
It was unclear whether Trump was issuing an order or verbalizing a long-standing aspiration.
Trump, who is seeking reelection next month, has made turning away from “ridiculous endless wars” the cornerstone of his foreign policy, despite thousands of soldiers remaining in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.
Just hours before Trump’s tweet, national security adviser Robert O’Brien said the United States had fewer than 5,000 troops in Afghanistan currently and that it would drop to 2,500 early next year.
“Ultimately, the Afghans themselves are going to have to come to an agreement, a peace agreement … It will be slow progress, it will be difficult progress, but we believe it is a necessary step; we believe that the Americans must come home. O’Brien said at an event at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
The National Security Council and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The White House plan for the downsizing will almost certainly be subject to review if Trump loses his bid for a second term in the Nov.3 election.
Trump’s comments could further weaken the influence of the Afghan government during negotiations with the Taliban.
While the talks are taking place in the Qatari capital Doha, dozens of Afghan soldiers and Taliban fighters have been killed in clashes. Dozens of civilians have also died in recent weeks.
Testifying before a committee of the US House of Representatives last month, US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said that once the number of US troops reaches 4,500, the administration “will assess the ties and actions that we have made and will make decisions about it.
About 2,400 US servicemen have died in the Afghan conflict and many thousands more have been injured.
Wednesday also marks 19 years since the United States invaded Afghanistan to overthrow the Taliban rulers who had harbored Al Qaeda militants who attacked the United States on September 11, 2001.
