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US Military Tells VOA No Afghan Drawdown Orders Received Yet

Ayaz Gul

   ISLAMABAD - The U.S. military told VOA Monday it has not received
   orders to reduce troop levels in Afghanistan and remains fully
   committed to Afghan partners to achieve security objectives.

   However, officials in Afghanistan have confirmed to VOA that the United
   States plans to withdraw thousands of troops from the country,
   insisting the move stemmed from a mutual understanding between the two
   allied nations.

   On Saturday, U.S. media reported that President Donald Trump's
   administration intends to announce as early as later this week plans to
   reduce the number of American forces in Afghanistan by around 4,000.

   "The matter regarding the withdrawal of 4,000 troops has nothing to do
   with the peace talks with the Taliban. It had already been agreed upon
   in principle between the governments of Afghanistan and the United
   States," the deputy Afghan presidential spokesman Dawa Khan Meenapal
   told VOA on Sunday. He, however, emphasized it would be a "gradual
   withdrawal" and shared no further details.

   Sources in Kabul told VOA the drawdown process is expected to start in
   three months "depending on the ground realities", though no official
   confirmation from the Afghan government was available immediately about
   the timeline.

   A U.S. military spokesman clarified in written comments to VOA that
   there is no timeline as they haven't received orders yet to begin a
   drawdown.

   "We remain fully committed to the Resolute Support mission and our
   Afghan partners, and focused on our key objective: ensuring Afghanistan
   is never again used as a safe haven for terrorists who threaten the
   United States, our allies or our interests," added the spokesman.

   Currently around 13,000 U.S. troops are deployed to Afghanistan and are
   conducting counterterrorism missions in addition to advising and
   training Afghan security forces battling the Taliban under the NATO's
   Resolute Support mission.

   Trump had told an American broadcaster (Fox News Radio) in a recent
   interview he might reduce the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan to
   around 8,600.

   The withdrawal of foreign forces has been at the center of a peace deal
   the U.S. has been trying to negotiate with the Taliban for over a year
   to end America's longest war.

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