TLTP
\nWASHINGTON
\nAll US troops in Afghanistan should be \u201chome by Christmas\u201d, President Donald Trump said, just hours after his national security adviser said Washington would reduce its forces in Afghanistan to 2,500 by early next year.
\nA landmark deal between the United States and the Taliban in February said foreign forces would leave Afghanistan by May 2021 in exchange for security guarantees by the Afghan armed group.
\nAlso, as a result of the deal, negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban started last month in the Qatari capital Doha to achieve lasting peace in the war-torn country. Rival negotiators have been pushing for the reduction of violence and a possible new power-sharing agreement in Kabul.
\nTrump and other officials have said the US will decrease its troops between 4,000 and 5,000 in Afghanistan by November. Beyond that, officials have said a reduction will depend on conditions in Afghanistan. On Twitter, Trump said: \u201cWe should have the small remaining number of our BRAVE Men and Women serving in Afghanistan home by Christmas!\u201d
\nIt was unclear whether Trump was giving an order or verbalising a long-held aspiration.Trump, who is seeking re-election next month, has made troops pullout from \u201cridiculous endless wars\u201d the cornerstone of his foreign policy, even though thousands of troops remain in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. Just hours before Trump\u2019s tweet, NSA Robert O\u2019Brien said the US had less than 5,000 troops in Afghanistan currently and would go down to 2,500 by early next year. \u201cUltimately, the Afghans themselves are going to have to work out an accord, a peace agreement \u2026 It\u2019s going to be slow progress, it\u2019s going to be hard progress, but we think it\u2019s a necessary step \u2013 we think Americans need to come home,\u201d O\u2019Brien told an event at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
\nThe National Security Council and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House\u2019s plan for the withdrawal will almost certainly be subject to review should Trump lose his bid for a second term in the November 3 election.
\nTrump\u2019s comments could further weaken the Afghan government\u2019s leverage during negotiations with the Taliban. While the talks have been taking place in Qatar\u2019s capital, many Afghan soldiers and Taliban fighters have been killed in clashes. Dozens of civilians have also died in recent weeks.
\nTestifying before a House of Representatives committee last month, Special Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said once the number of US troops reached 4,500, the administration \u201cwould do an evaluation of ties and actions that we have taken and make decisions on that\u201d. About 2,400 US service members have been killed in the Afghan conflict and thousands of others wounded. October 07 also marks 19 years since the US invaded Afghanistan after blaming the then-Taliban rulers for harbouring al-Qaeda leaders, including Osama bin Laden. Al-Qaeda was accused of plotting the 9\/11 attacks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TLTP WASHINGTON All US troops in Afghanistan should be \u201chome by Christmas\u201d, President Donald Trump said, just hours after his national security adviser said Washington would reduce its forces in Afghanistan to 2,500 by early next year. A landmark deal between the United States and the Taliban in February said foreign forces would leave Afghanistan […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-149327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n