No hasty withdrawal of troops from Afghan: US

We are conducting a rigorous interagency review of the situation, including all relevant options, with full consideration of the consequences of any potential course of action

LLOYD AUSTIN US Defence Secretary

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has said that the US will not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, stressing that violence must decrease now in the wartorn country and more progress is needed in the Afghan-led negotiations.

The US and the Taliban reached an agreement in February 2020 that called for a permanent ceasefire, peace negotiations between the Taliban and the Afghan government, and a withdrawal of all foreign forces by May 1. There are about 2,500 US troops currently in the country.

we are conducting a rigorous interagency review of the situation, including all relevant options, with full consideration of the consequences of any potential course of action"I told our allies that no matter what the outcome of our review, the US will not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan that puts their forces or the alliance's reputation at risk.

At this time, no decisions about our future force posture have been made," Austin told reporters at a Pentagon news conference on Friday.

"And so, to that end, we are conducting a rigorous interagency review of the situation, including all relevant options, with full consideration of the consequences of any potential course of action," he said.