Mattis signs Afghan troop order

Pentagon refuses to share details of numbers of troops to be sent

Washington, Sept. 1: US defence secretary Jim Mattis said on Friday that he had signed orders for deployment of new troops in Afghanistan as part of a new South Asia strategy announced recently by US President Donald Trump.

In an interaction with Pentagon reporters, Mr Mattis, however, refused to give any details of the new troop levels in terms of their numbers, deployment and where they are coming from.

“Yes. I’ve signed orders but it’s not completed. In other words I’ve signed some of the troops that will go and we’re identifying the specific ones,” Mr Mattis said.

Mr Mattis’ announcement came a day after the Pentagon disclosed that there are about 11,000 US troops in Afghanistan as against 8,600 announced earlier.

Unveiling his South Asia strategy ten days ago to

Yes, I’ve signed orders but it’s not completed. In other words, I’ve signed some of the troops that will go and we’re identifying the specific ones.

Jim Mattis, US defence secretary

win the war on terrorism , Mr Trump said that he would prolong the US military intervention in Afghanistan, which he had once described as a “complete waste”.

“Let me just be real clear when you go into Afghanistan and you’re carrying a gun you’re going into a combat zone. I don’t buy it. Don’t get me wrong the fight will still be carried by the Afghan security forces plus the 38 other allies who were there alongside us and will be working,” Mattis said.

“We have some counterterrorism strike teams that are there as you know. But by and large this is to enable the Afghan forces to fight more effectively. And there are some other things logistics,” he said.

Mr Mattis said that he would reveal details of the new troop level before the Congress soon.