Trump to present US vision for Afghan war
After weeks of deliberations, US President Donald Trump is ready to unveil his Afghanistan policy, which could include sending additional troops and increasing pressure on Pakistan to deny sanctuary to terrorist outfits such as the Haqqani Network operating from its soil.
The White House said Trump will announce an “an update on the path forward for America’s engagement in Afghanistan and South Asia” in a televised speech to the nation, only his second since he addressed a joint sitting of congress in February.
The policy will have implications for India, which has committed substantial amounts of aid to Afghanistan, neighbours Pakistan, Iran, China and Russia, as well as US allies that have contributed to the Nato-led international security assistance force.
Pakistan will likely be impacted directly, as defence secretary James Mattis indicated to reporters en route to Amman, Jordan on Sunday. Asked about Pakistan providing safe haven to terrorists and if that will be part of the new policy and how the administration plans to tackle it, Mattis said: “It is a South Asia strategy. It is not just an Afghanistan strategy. So if you look at the region, it’s a South Asia strategy, and we’ll be addressing those issues in it.”
He gave no details, but the administration could tie military aid and payments to certifiable action by Pakistan against terrorists, for which there exists a broad bipartisan consensus. One of the leading advocates of a tougher line on Pakistan, Lisa Curtis — Trump’s deputy assistant — was present at the president’s final review of the policy on Friday.