FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
November 28, 2019
Contact: press@defensepriorities.org
WASHINGTON, DC—Today, President Trump made an unannounced visit to Afghanistan and announced the resumption of withdrawal negotiations with the Taliban. Defense Priorities President Edward King issued the following statement in response:
“After more than 18 years of U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, any progress toward bringing our troops home is welcome news. However, the president’s statement that the U.S. will ’stay until such time as we have a deal, or we have total victory’ ignores reality and puts unnecessary preconditions on U.S. military withdrawal.
“The U.S. has achieved all it can in Afghanistan. Staying to try to force Kabul and the Taliban to reconcile may be admirable, but it confuses Afghan interests with U.S. interests. The U.S. doesn’t need a deal from the Taliban to prioritize our own interests. The president should stop talking about ending endless wars and actually end them.”
Defense Priorities report: Exiting Afghanistan
Defense Priorities explainer: U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan—with or without an agreement