Amidst the Afghanistan government and Taliban tussle, the Pentagon officials have expressed “deep concern” against the Taliban’s sweeping advances. They have further encouraged its partners in Kabul to defend their country.
Pentagon Officials Worry of the Deteriorating Security Situation in Afghanistan
As per the statement released by the spokesman of the Pentagon, John Kirby said that the Pentagon is watching the whole situation with “deep concern”. He said that the deteriorating security situation and the violence are “way too high”. Following this, the advances and the momentum by the Taliban seem to be high.
As per the reports, Kirby said that the Pentagon has been working with the Afghanistan military to encourage them to use the capacity and capability that the Pentagon believes they have.
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“We know that they know how to defend their country”, said Kirby.
He also stated Afghanistan has a very capable Air Force and “very sophisticated” Special Forces that can defend the country from the Taliban.
Reports suggest that the Taliban claims to have taken control of 85 percent of Afghanistan. However, the US officials dispute the same.
“This is a time for them to step up and to do exactly that,” Kirby said of their Afghan partners.
Washington Continues To Support Afghanistan
The US Central Command estimated that more than 90 percent of the US troops have been withdrawn from the Afghan soil. Talking to the media, Kirby said that even though the US won’t support Afghanistan on the ground, they will support the country and the people from a “financial perspective, logician perspective and aircraft maintenance”.
He said that they are not walking away from the relationship.
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The US withdrawal from Afghanistan comes after two decades, which is also Washington’s longest-running war. Reports suggest that over 2400 US troops have died and around 21,000 have been wounded.
Throughout the 20years period, the US-trained more than 300,000 Afghan military members and other security forces to combat the Taliban.
