US defense secretary indicates Kabul attack won’t change withdrawal plans

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin tweets his “deepest condolences” to the loved ones of the US soldiers killed in the Kabul blasts, but indicates the attack won’t change the country’s withdrawal plans.

“Terrorists took their lives at the very moment these troops were trying to save the lives of others,” he says in a statement.

“But we will not be dissuaded from the task at hand,” he says. “To do anything less — especially now — would dishonor the purpose and sacrifice these men and women have rendered our country and the people of Afghanistan.”

On behalf of the men and women of the @deptofdefense, I express my deepest condolences to the loved ones and teammates of all those killed and wounded in Kabul today. Full statement below: pic.twitter.com/GqwuJBKAAF

— Archive: Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDefAustin) August 26, 2021