Nato could pay ‘heavy price if troops leave Afghanistan’
Stoltenberg says the country still ‘risks becoming once again a plaform for terrorists to plan and organise atacks on our homelands’
Nato could pay a heavy price for leaving Afghanistan too early, its chief warned on Tuesday ater a US official said President Donald Trump is expected to withdraw a significant number of American troops from the conflict-ravaged country in the coming weeks.
“We now face a difficult decision. We have been in Afghanistan for almost 20 years, and no Nato ally wants to stay any longer than necessary. But at the same time, the price for leaving too soon or in an uncoordinated way could be very high,” Nato Secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement on Tuesday.
He said Afghanistan still “risks becoming once again a plaform for international terrorists to plan and organise atacks on our homelands. Daesh could rebuild in Afghanistan the area it lost in Syria and Iraq.”
Stoltenberg said that “even with further US reductions, Nato will continue its mission to train, advise and assist the Afghan security forces. We are also commited to funding them through 2024.”
“Hundreds of thousands of troops from Europe and beyond have stood shoulder to shoulder with American troops in Afghanistan, and over 1,000 of them have paid the ultimate price,” Stoltenberg said.
“We went into Afghanistan together. And when the time is right, we should leave together in a coordinated and orderly way. I count on all Nato allies to live up to this commitment, for our own security,” he said.
Separately, German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-karrenbauer said on Tuesday that any decisions on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan must be based on conditions on the ground.
“The ongoing peace negotiations in afghanistan have not yet brought the results that we all wish for,” Kramp-karrenbauer said.
“We have agreed in Nato, together with the US, that any reduction of troops or a complete withdrawal must be based on conditions to be defined reliably in a peace treaty,” the minister added.
The United States is by far Nato’s biggest and most influential ally. It spends more on defense than all the other countries combined. But Trump’s term in office has marked a particularly tumultuous time for the organisation. He has routinely berated other leaders for not spending enough on defense, and has pulled out of security agreements that European allies and Canada consider important for their security, such as the Iran nuclear deal and the Open Skies aerial surveillance pact.
French President Emmanuel Macron said last year that Nato was suffering from “brain death,” in part due to a lack of US leadership.
Stoltenberg has refrained from publicly criticising Trump or his decisions since Trump came to power in 2016.
Nato has fewer than 12,000 troops from dozens of nations in Afghanistan helping to train and advise the country’s national security forces.
More than half are not US troops, but the 30-nation alliance relies heavily on the United States for transport, air support, logistics and other assistance. It’s unlikely that Nato could even wind down its operation without US help.
The US decision comes just days ater Trump installed a new slate of loyalists in top Pentagon positions who share his frustration with the continued troop presence in war zones. The expected plans would cut US troop numbers almost in half by Jan.15, leaving 2,500 troops in Afghanistan.
There was some uncertainty regarding the United States’ future role in Afghanistan amid the transition process ater the US election.
US officials said military leaders were told over the weekend about the planned withdrawal and that an executive order is in the works but has not yet been delivered to commanders.
Nato took charge of the international security effort in Afghanistan in 2003, two years ater a Us-led coalition ousted the Taliban for harbouring former Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. In 2014, it began to train and advise Afghan security forces, but has gradually pulled troops out in line with a Us-brokered peace deal.
Nato’s security operation in Afghanistan is its biggest and most ambitious undertaking ever. It was launched ater the military alliance activated its mutual defense clause - known as Article 5 - for the first time, mobilising all the allies in support of the United States in the wake of the 9/11 atacks on New York and Washington.