Action comes as part of Taliban peace deal.
Five American military bases in Afghanistan have now been closed as part of an agreement the U.S. signed with the Taliban more than four months ago.
In the deal, the U.S. promised to withdraw all forces from the bases in the first 135 days from the agreement, a milestone met on Tuesday, according to Zalmay Khalilzed, President Trump’s special representative to those peace talks.
In a tweet, he said, “The U.S. has worked hard to carry out the first phase of its commitments under the Agreement, including to reduce forces and depart five bases. NATO troops have come down in proportional numbers.”
The five closed bases were located in Helmand, Uruzgan, Paktika and Laghman provinces in the southern and eastern sectors of Afghanistan.
Even though the United States has upheld its end of this phase of the agreement, violence between the Taliban and Afghan forces has spiked in recent months.
“As we look to the next phase of implementation under the agreement, our approach will remain conditions-based,” Khalilzad said. “We will press for completion of prisoner releases, reduction of violence, complete delivery on CT commitments and start of and progress in intra-Afghan negotiations.”
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- About the United States slowly removing itself from the internal conflicts between the government of Afghanistan and the Taliban.
- For the safety of all remaining American troops in the region.
Sources: Fox News, Stars & Stripes
