U.S. to Keep Larger Afghan Bases After Pullout
WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – The Pentagon has approved drawdown plans in Afghanistan that will still keep two larger bases in the country as officials carry out President Donald Trump’s orders to slash troop levels to 2,500 by Jan. 15, the U.S. general says.
Trump’s post-election decision last month to cut nearly half of the roughly 4,500 troops currently in Afghanistan came before military leaders could devise plans to execute a drawdown, leaving many questions unanswered about the future U.S. military mission after Trump leaves office on Jan. 20.
Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, offered the first details about the drawdown at an event hosted by the Brookings Institution think tank. He said that in addition to the two larger bases, the United States would also keep "several satellite bases.”
Milley did not disclose which bases in Afghanistan would be shuttered or say what capabilities would be lost as the United States removes 2,000 troops from the country. He declined to speculate about what President-elect Joe Biden may decide.
"What comes after that, that will be up to a new administration,” Milley said.
As the United States prepares to withdraw more troops, the U.S.-backed Afghan government and Taliban representatives reached a preliminary deal on Wednesday to press on with peace talks.
It was their first written agreement in 19 years of war that Milley said has long been stalemated, with neither side able to defeat the other on the battlefield.
In the agreement reached between the U.S. and the Taliban on February 29, the Trump administration promised to pull out all its troops by mid-2021.
The Taliban agreed to negotiate a permanent ceasefire and a power-sharing formula with the Afghan government.
The U.S. invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban regime in 2001 on the pretext of fighting terrorism following the September 11 attacks in New York. Afghanistan has been gripped by insecurity since then.
Trump’s post-election decision last month to cut nearly half of the roughly 4,500 troops currently in Afghanistan came before military leaders could devise plans to execute a drawdown, leaving many questions unanswered about the future U.S. military mission after Trump leaves office on Jan. 20.
Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, offered the first details about the drawdown at an event hosted by the Brookings Institution think tank. He said that in addition to the two larger bases, the United States would also keep "several satellite bases.”
Milley did not disclose which bases in Afghanistan would be shuttered or say what capabilities would be lost as the United States removes 2,000 troops from the country. He declined to speculate about what President-elect Joe Biden may decide.
"What comes after that, that will be up to a new administration,” Milley said.
As the United States prepares to withdraw more troops, the U.S.-backed Afghan government and Taliban representatives reached a preliminary deal on Wednesday to press on with peace talks.
It was their first written agreement in 19 years of war that Milley said has long been stalemated, with neither side able to defeat the other on the battlefield.
In the agreement reached between the U.S. and the Taliban on February 29, the Trump administration promised to pull out all its troops by mid-2021.
The Taliban agreed to negotiate a permanent ceasefire and a power-sharing formula with the Afghan government.
The U.S. invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban regime in 2001 on the pretext of fighting terrorism following the September 11 attacks in New York. Afghanistan has been gripped by insecurity since then.