Washington: The US Army on Friday achieved the target of reducing the number of its troops to 2,500 in Afghanistan. President Donald Trump, who ordered a reduction in the number of troops in November, said on Thursday that the number of US troops stationed in Afghanistan had been the lowest in 19 years.
However, he did not mention the number of soldiers. In February last year, the Trump Administration signed an agreement with the Taliban to reduce the number of US troops in a phased manner and complete withdrawal of troops by 2021. It is not clear what the Biden administration will decide in this regard.
Newly elected President Joe Biden has advocated for the deployment of small counter-terrorism forces in Afghanistan so that extremist groups such as al-Qaeda do not attack the US. Now they have many questions about Afghanistan. One question is, will he go ahead on the path of cutting the number of American troops in Afghanistan?
Trump, in his brief statement, mentioned the long-standing desire to move out of Afghanistan. He pointed to the war that started in Afghanistan in 2001 and the war in Iraq since 2003, saying, “I have always been committed to ending the endless war.” However, senior military officials have warned of a rapid reduction in troops in Afghanistan.
Acting Defense Minister Christopher Miller announced in November 2017 that he was following Trump’s orders. As a result, military commanders have withdrawn more than 1,500 troops from Afghanistan in the past few weeks. According to Trump’s order, the commander has also reduced the number of US troops in Iraq from 3,000 to 2,500.
