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A Pentagon spokesperson said that the Afghan army has a military advantage, but pointed out that there is a “lack of resistance” to the Taliban’s offensive.
The Pentagon stated that the United States would like to see more resistance from the Afghan army against the Taliban, and emphasized that the government Afghanistan Despite their recent losses, they have the upper hand on paper.
Defense Ministry spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Friday that the Afghan army has the tools to fight the ongoing fierce Taliban offensive.
“We want to see the will and political leadership, military leadership required in this area. We still want to see this, we want to see this,” Kirby told reporters.
“But whether it happens or not, whether it succeeds or not, it really is determined by the Afghans.”
Encouraged by the withdrawal of US troops, the Taliban occupied the capitals of 18 provinces within a week, including Herat and Kandahar, Afghanistan’s third and second largest city. The organization also seems to be approaching the capital Kabul.
But the US government, which plans to withdraw all combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of this month, insists that the Afghan government has the ability to counter Taliban attacks without the support of American soldiers.
“They have more numbers. They have an air force, a capable air force… they have modern equipment. They have an organizational structure. They benefit from the training we have provided them for more than 20 years,” Kirby said of the Afghan army. .
“They have material, material and tangible advantages. Now is the time to take advantage of these advantages.”
When asked if the US government was surprised by the recent developments, Kirby mentioned what he called the “lack of resistance” facing the Taliban and the speed at which the organization occupied the city.
He declined to comment on the prospect of the Taliban taking Kabul in the near future.
Troops deployment
Pentagon Announce On Thursday, it was dispatching 3,000 soldiers to evacuate embassy staff in Kabul and Afghan American Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants.
The US State Department has stated that it is reducing its personnel in Afghanistan, but emphasized that the embassy in Kabul will remain open.
On Friday, Kirby said that the additional troops were already on their way to Afghanistan, and most of the troops should be there before the end of Sunday.
“What we hope to be able to do is get there quickly, have the ability to get there, and be able to provide the State Department with as much capacity as possible,” he said. “Our goal is to be able to transport thousands of people every day.”
The military did not evacuate all Americans.Washington has urge U.S. citizens who are not working in the embassy leave Afghanistan on commercial flights as soon as possible.
Earlier on Friday, the White House stated that President Joe Biden, who spent the weekend at the President’s retreat at Camp David, “heard a briefing from members of his national security team on ongoing efforts to safely reduce the footprint of civilians in Afghanistan”.
On Thursday, Secretary of State Anthony Brinken and the head of the Pentagon Lloyd Austin spoke on the phone with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
The US State Department said in a statement: “Faced with the Taliban’s violence, the United States remains committed to the security and stability of Afghanistan.”
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