U.S. Official in Afghanistan Says Steps to End Military Mission Launched

Commander of foreign forces in Afghanistan, U.S. Army General Scott Miller affirmed Sunday that an orderly withdrawal of foreign forces and the handing over of military bases and equipment to the Afghan forces had begun.

Miller noted that he was acting on orders based on U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to end America's longest war, deeming the prolonged and intractable battle in Afghanistan no longer aligned with American priorities.

Earlier this month Biden said he would withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan before the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, affirming “it is time to end America’s longest war.”

Miller, who has been commanding the U.S. forces and the NATO Resolute Support Mission in the country during their fight against the Taliban since 2018, asserted that foreign forces will continue to have "the military means and capability to fully protect themselves during the ongoing retrograde and will support the Afghan security forces."

"I've had the opportunity to talk to Taliban members with the Taliban Political Commission, and I've told them a return to violence, an effort to force a military decision, would be a tragedy for Afghanistan and the Afghan people," Miller told reporters in the capital Kabul.