Politico | Republicans livid over Donald Trump’s plan to reduce troops in Afghanistan
- Troop levels will be cut to 2,500 by January 15, just days before Trump leaves office
- News comes a week after a purge of top US defence officials, including Pentagon chief Mark Esper
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Andrew Desiderio on politico.com on November 16, 2020.
Congressional Republicans on Monday slammed President Donald Trump’s plan for a swift reduction of US troop presence in Afghanistan, warning that it would be a gift to America’s enemies and would undermine progress already made in the region.
“A rapid withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan now would hurt our allies and delight the people who wish us harm,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said bluntly.
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The Kentucky Republican’s remarks came as POLITICO reported that the White House has instructed the Pentagon to begin planning for a significant drawdown of US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq. A defence official told POLITICO that under the proposal, just 2,500 American troops would remain in each country by January 15, just five days before President-elect Joe Biden takes office. Currently, there are between 4,500 and 5,000 troops in Afghanistan and around 3,000 in Iraq.
Other Republicans agreed with McConnell on Monday.
“The concern would be it would turn into a Saigon-type of situation where it would fall very quickly and then our ability to conduct operations against terrorist elements in the region could be compromised,” Senator Marco Rubio, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a brief interview. “That’s my primary concern right now.”
Indeed, Republicans expressed widespread fear that lowering the number of troops could allow the Taliban to continue to overthrow elements of the Afghan government.