U.S. General: Premature Afghan Pullout Would Be ?Strategic Mistake?

Thu, 18 Jul 2019

U.S. General: Premature Afghan Pullout Would Be ?Strategic Mistake?

RFE
12 Jul 2019, 04:15 GMT+10

A premature withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan would be 'a strategic mistake,' U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to be the top military officer said on July 11.

General Mark Milley, currently the Army's chief of staff and nominee to head the joint chiefs of staff, told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that he believed the war would eventually be brought to an end through a negotiated settlement with the Taliban.

He said that there was 'some progress' in that effort.

Milley also said the U.S. should keep a 'modest number' of forces in Iraq and Syria to maintain stability.

The United States and the Taliban continue negotiations on the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan in return for a commitment from the militants that Afghan territory will never again be used to launch terrorist attacks against the United States and its allies.

/**/ /**/ /**/ SEE ALSO: Taliban, Afghan Delegates Agree On Road Map To Peace -- But Texts Differ

U.S. special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has described the latest round of talks with the militant group as the 'most productive' yet.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP

Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Republished with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Middle East Star.

More Information

Sports

Williamson and team do New Zealand proud, writes UAE newspaper

"It just wasn't meant to be.""Given the heartbreaking circumstances of Sunday's Cricket World Cup final defeat, New Zealand captain Kane ...

SA paddling team for African Games eye Olympic spots

Durban - A strong team of eight paddlers have been selected to represent Team SA announced for 2019 African GamesTo ...

PRO14 season to kick off on South African soil

Cape Town - South Africa will raise the curtain on the new PRO14 campaign when the Cheetahs host 2015 champions ...

Etzebeth to lead Boks in Rugby Championship opener

Johannesburg - Experienced lock Eben Etzebeth was on Wednesday named as Springbok captain for Saturday's first Rugby Championship match against ...

Ben Stokes calls entire England management as World Cup winners

New Delhi [India], July 17 (ANI): Member of the 2019 World Cup winning team and England all-rounder Ben Stokes on ...

Joe Root thanks countrymen for unbelievable support

New Delhi [India], July 17 (ANI): Member of the 2019 World Cup-winning team, English batsman Joe Root on Wednesday expressed ...

International

67,000 Vietnamese maimed by unexploded cluster bombs since war's end

History often focuses on the immediate death toll of war. But hostilities can have longer-term consequences on a population's health.In ...

Delhi Police criticised after girl, 6, is abducted and brutally raped

DELHI, India - A women's advocate group in Delhi has slammed police for their handling of a brutal alleged rape ...

Israel increases fleet of F-35 fighter jets to sixteen

TEL AVIV, Israel - Israel has taken delivery of two more brand new F-35 "Adir" jet fighters.The two new jets ...

Williamson and team do New Zealand proud, writes UAE newspaper

"It just wasn't meant to be.""Given the heartbreaking circumstances of Sunday's Cricket World Cup final defeat, New Zealand captain Kane ...

Human Rights Watch says new Trump rule unfair to asylum seekers

WASHINGTON, DC - The new rule that the Trump administration announced on Monday effectively bars from asylum nearly anyone who ...

U.S. ICE agents begin rounding up illegal immigrants

Nationwide raids across the United States, aimed at rounding up 2,000 immigrants in the country illegally for possible deportation got ...

Movie Review

Braveheart [Blu-Ray]