President Joe Biden has not yet made a decision on whether to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by May 1, a deadline he inherited from the Trump administration.
KABUL, Afghanistan — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made a surprise stop in Afghanistan on Sunday, his first as Pentagon chief, as top generals warn that the country could fall into chaos if U.S. troops withdraw before diplomatic efforts between the Taliban and the Afghan government to end the conflict yield results.
President Joe Biden is still weighing a decision on whether to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by May 1, the deadline stipulated by an agreement he inherited from the Trump administration. But violence in the country remains too high, Austin told reporters after meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul.
“It’s obvious that the level of violence remains pretty high in the country, we’d really like to see that violence come down,” Austin said. “If it does come down, it can begin to set the conditions for some really fruitful diplomatic work.”
Austin declined to say whether the Taliban are meeting the conditions of the February 2020 agreement negotiated by the previous administration, but stressed that he wants to see “a responsible end to the conflict.”
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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made a surprise stop in Afghanistan on Sunday, his first as Pentagon chief, as top generals warned that the country could fall into chaos if U.S. troops withdraw prematurelyhttps://t.co/U4YVru4DD9
— POLITICO (@politico) March 21, 2021
WATCH: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin makes an unannounced visit to Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/2JO6qYP4CH
— The Hill (@thehill) March 21, 2021
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