United States President Donald Trump will unveil a new strategy for the war in Afghanistan, in a television address to the country on Monday, Reuters reported. The White House said the address, scheduled to take place at 9 pm at Fort Myer, Virginia, will “provide an update on the path forward for America’s engagement in Afghanistan and South Asia”.
This could mean more US troops on Afghan soil. According to an official, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that US military presence was needed in the region to tackle the threat of Islamist terrorism. There are concerns that the Afghan Taliban may allow regional affiliates of the Islamic State group and the al-Qaeda set up their bases in Afghanistan.
Trump is believed to have decided on a new strategy for Afghanistan after long discussions with top military and national security advisors at Camp David, Maryland, on Friday. Mattis said on Sunday that Trump had come to a decision on a new strategy after a “sufficiently rigorous” review process.
“I am very comfortable that the strategic process was sufficiently rigorous and did not go in with a pre-set position,” the defense secretary told reporters aboard a flight to Jordan. “The president has made a decision. As he said, he wants to be the one to announce it to the American people.”
In July, Trump had told advisors in a meeting, “We’re not winning [in Afghanistan]”, and had wondered whether Army General John Nicholson, the top US military commander in Afghanistan, should be fired.
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