Afghanistan Times
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Trump wants Afghan war to be ended
AT Monitoring Desk
KABUL: US President Donald Trump addressed Congress on Tuesday night for his last State of the Union address before the 2020 election, claiming in an appeal to voters that, over the past three years, he had helped stage the “Great American Comeback.”
In parts of his speech he addressed Afghanistan and praised the US military operations, peace talks and troops withdrawal.
In Afghanistan, the determination and valor of our warfighters has allowed us to make tremendous progress, and peace talks are underway, said President Trump.
“I am not looking to kill hundreds of thousands of people in Afghanistan, many of them innocent. It is also not our function to serve other nations as a law enforcement agency. These are warfighters, the best in the world, and they either want to fight to win or not fight at all. We are working to finally end America’s longest war and bring our troops back home,” Trump said.
Trump furthered that the US is working to finally end “America’s longest war” in Afghanistan and “bring our troops back home.”
“In Afghanistan, the determination and valor of our warfighters has allowed us to make tremendous progress and peace talks are now underway,” Trump said.
The speech footage shows that Nancy Pelosi, the Congress Speaker tore a copy of President Trump’s speech as he finished speaking.
President Donald Trump didn’t appear to notice as Pelosi, standing behind him in the gallery, ripped up the papers.
When asked after the event why she ripped up the speech, Pelosi told reporters it was “because it was a courteous thing to do considering the alternative. It was such a dirty speech.”
Moreover, on Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo demanded “demonstrable evidence” from the Taliban that it can and will reduce violence before signing a deal that would lead to Afghanistan peace talks and a withdrawal of American troops from the country, according to an AP report.
Speaking at a news conference in neighboring Uzbekistan, Pompeo said a deal is close but that they have been close before and failed because the Taliban was unable to demonstrate its seriousness. He said more work remains to be done so that peace talks can get started.
