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KABUL: The Afghan security forces are fully prepared to conduct anti-militant operations across the country, defense authority said on Sunday, hinting to the U.S. troops downsizing to 2,500 in Afghanistan.
A spokesman for the ministry of defense, Ruhullah Ahmadzai said that the Afghan security was capable of filling the gap of American soldiers in the fight against the terrorists.
“The international community has repeatedly pledged to continue financial and technical support to the Afghan security forces,” he added. “The security forces are capable of conducting aerial and ground operations against the militants.”
Meanwhile, the Resolute Support in a tweet said that the Afghan security force has taken the responsibility of training the fresh recruited military soldiers this year. The Resolute Support attached a video of the Afghan security forces training in a tweet.
“NATO Allies and partners count (and) focus on improving sustainability (for the) Afghan security institutions, from basic training up (and) the defense ministries. Since 2002, we’ve helped our partners build the Army at the Combined Arms Training Center,” the Resolute Support said in a tweet.
This comes as the US ministry of defense announced that the number of American soldiers dropped to 2,500 in Afghanistan. “Today, U.S. forces in Afghanistan total 2,500 – a force level conducive to both our counterterrorism mission and our resolve, with our NATO partners, to support Afghan Security Forces working to secure peace in their country.” the ministry quoted the Secretary of Defense, Chris Miller.
The withdrawal of American troops was agreed in a preliminary peace deal signed on February 29th of 2020. Under the deal that also laid out the intra-Afghan negotiation between the government and Taliban, the Taliban stipulated to cut ties with Al-Qaeda terrorists, the mastermind of 9/11 attacks.
A spokesman for the Taliban political office in Qatar, Mohammad Naeem, praised the drawdown of American troops in the country.
“The withdrawal of other US forces from Afghanistan, which was announced by the US yesterday, is a good advancement and practical measure. Undoubtedly, the practice of the agreement signed between the IEA and the US is in the benefit of both countries and nations,” he added.
As the US is on card of pulling out its troops from Afghanistan, yet NATO is to decide about the withdrawal of Resolute Support Forces in the country.
NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg has said that Resolute Support would make its decision in February on the presence of its troops in Afghanistan. The decision to reduce the number of troops, Stoltenberg has said, depends on the security situation in Afghanistan.
