Donald Trump said he would continue to expand US military intervention in Afghanistan, bowing to advice from his top officials to raise the stakes once more in the 16 year conflict.
Trump also claimed he would take a much tougher line than Barack Obama’s administration with Pakistan, accusing of the country of harbouring terrorist groups and warning that Islamabad would have “much to lose” if it continued.
In a televised address to troops at Fort Myer in Virginia, the president did not provide a timetable for an eventual US exit. Nor did he gave a number for the troop reinforcements he would be sending to Afghanistan, saying they would be determined by “conditions on the ground and not arbitrary timetables”.
Trump said making too many of such details public was one of the mistakes made by the Obama administration.
However, the Trump White House has given the Pentagon authority to deploy another 4,000 more troops to bolster the 8,400 there already and vice-president Mike Pence was reported to have told Congress that 3,900 extra soldiers would be sent.
The president admitted that escalating the US war in Afghanistan had not been his initial instinct when he came to office. Trump scarcely mentioned Afghanistan during last year’s election campaign, but prior to entering the presidential race, he had vociferously argued for withdrawal. So had his former chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, who was fired on Friday after a fierce struggle in a divided White House.
“My original instinct was to pull out, and historically I like following my instincts, but all of my life I heard that decisions are much different when you sit behind the desk in the Oval Office,” Trump said.
He gave three reasons for continuing the US involvement in the Afghan war on the side of the Kabul government against the Taliban: to honour those American soldiers who had died there since 2001, to stop Afghanistan to become a haven for terrorists once more and to help stabilise the South Asia region.
“Our nation must seek an honourable and enduring outcome worthy of the tremendous sacrifices that have been made,” Trump said.
“The consequences of a rapid exit are both predictable and unacceptable,” he added. “A hasty withdrawal would create a vacuum that terrorists – including Isis and Al Qaeda – would instantly fill, just as happened before September 11.”
“Thirdly and finally, I concluded that the security threats we face in Afghanistan and the broader region are immense,” he said.
He said his strategy differed from Obama’s because he would not telegraph troop numbers or deadlines for withdrawal. He said that the role of US troops would be fundamentally different.
“We are not nation building again. We are killing terrorists,” Trump said. In practice, and as Trump conceded in his speech, much of the US effort will be dedicated to continue to build up the Afghan security forces until they are able to fight the Taliban alone. The Obama administration had the same goal, and it remains a distant one.
The other break with the past is a tougher line against the Pakistani government. Groups like the Haqqani network, which is both terrorist and criminal, have long been based in tribal lands in western Pakistan. Persuading the Pakistani security services to cut them off was an objective of both the Bush and the Obama administrations, that was never achieved. Trump claimed he would succeed by being tougher on Islamabad.
“We can no longer be silent about Pakistan’s safe havens for terrorist organisations, the Taliban, and other groups that pose a threat to the region and beyond,” Trump said. “Pakistan has much to gain from partnering with our effort in Afghanistan. It has much to lose by continuing to harbor terrorists.”
The Afghan government was also come under more pressure to reform its military and its corruption-rife bureaucracy.
“Our support is not a blank cheque,” Trump said. “Our patience is not unlimited. We will keep our eyes wide open.”
Efforts by previous administrations to pressure Kabul and Islamabad, foundered on Washington’s need for both governments to survive and to continue to cooperate in the fight against terrorist groups. That limited US leverage. It was not immediately clear from President Trump’s speech how he proposed to resolve that longstanding quandary.
In a televised address to troops at Fort Myer in Virginia, the president did not provide a timetable for an eventual US exit. Nor did he gave a number for the troop reinforcements he would be sending to Afghanistan, saying they would be determined by “conditions on the ground and not arbitrary timetables”.
Trump said making too many of such details public was one of the mistakes made by the Obama administration.
However, the Trump White House has given the Pentagon authority to deploy another 4,000 more troops to bolster the 8,400 there already and vice-president Mike Pence was reported to have told Congress that 3,900 extra soldiers would be sent.
The president admitted that escalating the US war in Afghanistan had not been his initial instinct when he came to office. Trump scarcely mentioned Afghanistan during last year’s election campaign, but prior to entering the presidential race, he had vociferously argued for withdrawal. So had his former chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, who was fired on Friday after a fierce struggle in a divided White House.
“My original instinct was to pull out, and historically I like following my instincts, but all of my life I heard that decisions are much different when you sit behind the desk in the Oval Office,” Trump said.
He gave three reasons for continuing the US involvement in the Afghan war on the side of the Kabul government against the Taliban: to honour those American soldiers who had died there since 2001, to stop Afghanistan to become a haven for terrorists once more and to help stabilise the South Asia region.
“Our nation must seek an honourable and enduring outcome worthy of the tremendous sacrifices that have been made,” Trump said.
“The consequences of a rapid exit are both predictable and unacceptable,” he added. “A hasty withdrawal would create a vacuum that terrorists – including Isis and Al Qaeda – would instantly fill, just as happened before September 11.”
“Thirdly and finally, I concluded that the security threats we face in Afghanistan and the broader region are immense,” he said.
He said his strategy differed from Obama’s because he would not telegraph troop numbers or deadlines for withdrawal. He said that the role of US troops would be fundamentally different.
“We are not nation building again. We are killing terrorists,” Trump said. In practice, and as Trump conceded in his speech, much of the US effort will be dedicated to continue to build up the Afghan security forces until they are able to fight the Taliban alone. The Obama administration had the same goal, and it remains a distant one.
The other break with the past is a tougher line against the Pakistani government. Groups like the Haqqani network, which is both terrorist and criminal, have long been based in tribal lands in western Pakistan. Persuading the Pakistani security services to cut them off was an objective of both the Bush and the Obama administrations, that was never achieved. Trump claimed he would succeed by being tougher on Islamabad.
“We can no longer be silent about Pakistan’s safe havens for terrorist organisations, the Taliban, and other groups that pose a threat to the region and beyond,” Trump said. “Pakistan has much to gain from partnering with our effort in Afghanistan. It has much to lose by continuing to harbor terrorists.”
The Afghan government was also come under more pressure to reform its military and its corruption-rife bureaucracy.
“Our support is not a blank cheque,” Trump said. “Our patience is not unlimited. We will keep our eyes wide open.”
Efforts by previous administrations to pressure Kabul and Islamabad, foundered on Washington’s need for both governments to survive and to continue to cooperate in the fight against terrorist groups. That limited US leverage. It was not immediately clear from President Trump’s speech how he proposed to resolve that longstanding quandary.
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