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US forces’ withdrawal to begin in a week
The Chiefs of Staff also supported the US-Taliban agreement for bringing peace to Afghanistan saying it was a conditioned agreement.
Apparently, the US force withdrawal process will be started gradually following the US-Taliban, after 19 years of war.
US Secretary of Defense talks about close monitoring of the Taliban’s actions adding that the future decisions of the US depend on the Taliban’s commitment.
According to him, the ‘preparation for the withdrawal of US forces within ten days’ is a sign of success for the US commitment to the peace agreement.
Mark Esper the US Secretary of Defense said that the US will decrease its troops to 8,600 within 135 days and will start withdrawing the US forces within 10 days, adding that he had commanded the joint forces’ Chief of Staff to start working on the withdrawal.
Esper also underlined that the remaining 8,600 troops hold the capability of conducting necessary military operations.
Mark Milley, the Chief of Staff for the joint forces considered the US-Taliban agreement a “very critical point” for Afghanistan to end the war and called it an achievement after the US’s sacrifices.
Mark Milley said, “This agreement, as the secretary said, is conditional and the best opportunity to end the war is now. Protecting the US national security is a priority one the agreement as well as it provides the best hope for a peaceful future for the people of Afghanistan.”
Although according to the agreement, the US war with the Taliban is over, another challenge for the Afghan peace process is starting the Intra-Afghan dialogues – begin with, the Taliban has set a precondition which is the release of 5,000 prisoners, but has been rejected by the Afghan government.