NATO insists that its members will consult and decide together on when to leave Afghanistan, after US President Donald Trump vowed to bring American troops home by Christmas.
Trump, trailing in polls ahead of the November 3 presidential election, made his surprise announcement on Twitter yesterday, dramatically speeding up the timeline for ending America’s longest war.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg repeats the alliance’s longstanding position that it will end its mission in Afghanistan only when conditions on the ground permit.
“We decided to go into Afghanistan together, we will make decisions on future adjustments together, and when the time is right, we will leave together,” Stoltenberg says at a news conference after talks with North Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg holds a joint press conference with the Turkish Foreign Minister after their meeting at the Foreign Ministry building in Ankara, on October 05, 2020. (Adem ALTAN / AFP)
NATO went into Afghanistan following the 2001 US-led invasion to topple the Taliban in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks. It ended its combat operations in Afghanistan in 2014 and has vastly reduced its presence on the ground, but maintains a 12,000-strong force training and advising local forces.
— AFP
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