Donald Trump asserts all US troops in Afghanistan will be 'home by Christmas'

Amid ongoing Afghan peace process, US President Donald Trump has asserted that all US troops stationed in Afghanistan will leave the war-torn country by Christmas. He reiterated his wish to completely pull out the US troops stationed in Afghanistan, undercutting the assertions of US diplomats that troop reductions would be based on the Taliban’s commitment to the peace agreement signed in February. Trump tweeted:

Trump has been advocating for a maximum US troops withdrawal from war zones and even called the US involvement in the Middle East “the single biggest mistake in the history of our country.” Trump and State Department have been loggerheads over the troop withdrawal plan as diplomats and military officials have been trying to keep the peace process on track.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said the United States will calibrate the pace of its withdrawal from Afghanistan according to the actions of the Taliban. Speaking in Doha ahead of the signing of the peace deal, Pompeo said that the US will closely watch the Taliban for their compliance with their commitments and calibrate the pace of our withdrawal with their actions.

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In August, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that the United States plans to cut down its troop level in Afghanistan to less than 5000 by the end of November. During a Fox News interview broadcast on August 8, Esper provided details on the withdrawal plan that US President Donald Trump had announced the earlier week.

Level of violence

Meanwhile, the Special US Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation has acknowledged that the level of violence is unacceptably high with the possibility of further setbacks during talks. The spotlight from the peace talks has faded after the lavish opening ceremony on September 12 as the Afghan government and the Taliban continue to disagree on even basic issues.

“By any measure, current levels of violence are too high,” special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad told a Congressional hearing.

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