US vice-president Pence pays surprise visit to troops in Afghanistan
KABUL: Vice-President Mike Pence told US troops in Afghanistan Thursday that they have put the Taliban on the run, as he became the most senior Trump administration official to visit the men and women fighting America's longest-ever war.
Flying secretly through the day and night on a standard unmarked US Air Force C-17, Pence corkscrewed into Bagram Airfield on the unannounced visit, to thank some of the roughly 15,000 US personnel still hoping to turn the tide in the conflict, now in its 17th year.
The superpower's vexed campaign against al-Qaeda and the Taliban — born from the rubble of the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, receives ever-less public attention in the US these days.
“The American people deserve to know that with the courage of everyone gathered here, we're making real progress in this fight for freedom in Afghanistan,” Pence told the troops.
“We've dramatically increased American air strikes. And together with our Afghan partners, we've put the Taliban on the defensive,” he said, also pointing at efforts to target the drug trafficking networks that help fund the Taliban.
“All across this country we've won new victories against the terrorists, no matter what they call themselves or where they try to hide.”
“And never doubt that your mission — your mission here in Afghanistan — is vital to the safety and security of the American people,” Pence said.
Pence's visit was designed to shift the spotlight back on personnel and their mission, however briefly, before Americans turn their focus to turkey lunches, festive cheer and contentious domestic politics.
His visit also included a helicopter dash from Bagram into the heart of the capital Kabul to meet President Ashraf Ghani and chief executive Abdullah Abdullah, both of whom the US is counting on to help rebuild this war-shattered country.
“We've been on a long road together” he said. “We've both sacrificed much.”
But, he added: “We are here to see this through.”
The vice-president also aimed a jab at neighbouring Pakistan — reiterating word for word Trump's warning that it must stop offering cross-border safe havens to Taliban factions and armed jihadist groups fighting US troops and their Afghan allies. — AFP