1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Combat Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, watch CH-47 Chinook helicopters spin up during a sandstorm at Kushamond Advanced Operational Base, Afghanistan, on July 17, during preparation for an air assault mission.
US Army photo
WASHINGTON – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday that the alliance has not yet decided whether the 10,000 troops it maintains in Afghanistan will leave the country by May, according to a peace agreement negotiated between the United States and the United States. Taliban.
“Violence must be reduced and the Taliban must stop cooperating with international terrorist groups who plan terrorist attacks in our countries,” Stoltenberg told reporters at the conclusion of a two-day virtual meeting with NATO defense ministers.
Last February, the United States brokered an agreement with the Taliban that would initiate a permanent ceasefire and further reduce the US military footprint from approximately 13,000 troops to 8,600 in mid-July last year.
In May 2021, all foreign forces would leave the country tired of the war, according to the agreement.
“Our goal is to ensure that we have a lasting political agreement that allows us to leave in a way that does not undermine our primary objective, which is to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven again. [for terrorists]”Stoltenberg said, adding” This is also the reason why we will continue to assess the situation before making any final decisions about our future. “
Jens Stoltenberg, 13th Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is talking to the media at NATO headquarters on February 11, 2020 in Brussels, Belgium.
Thierry Monasse / Getty Images
“Most of the troops are from European allies and partner countries. We will do whatever is necessary to ensure that our troops are safe,” said Stoltenberg when asked if the alliance was prepared for violence if the Taliban agreement is broken.
There are about 2,500 American soldiers in the country. The United States is currently scheduled to withdraw the US military from Afghanistan by May 1, 2021.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told NATO members that the Biden administration was “conducting a thorough review of the conditions of the US-Taliban agreement to determine whether all parties adhered to these conditions,” according to a Pentagon reading of the meeting.
“He assured the allies that the United States would not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan,” the statement added.
The Pentagon said earlier that withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan would depend on Taliban commitments to maintain the peace deal negotiated last year.
The wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria have cost American taxpayers more than $ 1.57 trillion since September 11, 2001, according to a Defense Department report. The war in Afghanistan, which is now America’s longest running conflict, started 19 years ago and cost US taxpayers $ 193 billion, according to the Pentagon.
Stoltenberg also said on Thursday that the NATO alliance has decided to expand its security training mission in Iraq. The military alliance agreed to increase its footprint from 500 to around 4,000.
“Our presence is based on conditions and the increase in the number of soldiers will be incremental,” he said, adding that the request for an expanded mission was made by the Iraqi government.