U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has expressed that the first job of the Afghan Security Forces is to make sure they can slow the Taliban’s momentum before attempting to retake territories.
“They are consolidating their forces around key population centers. As to whether or not it will stop the Taliban, I think the first thing to do is to make sure they can slow the momentum,” Austin said during a visit to the state of Alaska, as reported by ‘Tolo News’.
These statements come in the context of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghan territory after 20 years since the beginning of the war in the Asian nation.
In addition, in this same context, this Saturday the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has promised to provide economic assistance to the Afghan Security Forces and to redouble diplomatic efforts to revive peace talks between the two sides of the conflict.
In addition, Biden has authorized a fund of nearly $100 million, some 84 million euros to meet the needs of Afghan refugees.
At the same time, following his meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, he reaffirmed his commitment to a lasting bilateral partnership, as well as his interest in seeing a peace process certified in the country.
“We call on the Taliban to engage in serious negotiations to determine a political roadmap for Afghanistan’s future that will lead to a just and lasting solution,” U.S. State Department deputy spokeswoman Jalina Porter said in this regard.
