The US Defense Secretary James Mattis said at a press conference on Monday that President Donald Trump's administration was "very, very close" to finalising its new strategy for Afghanistan but warned it had not been settled yet.
"The strategic decisions have not been made," Mattis said adding that "all options" remained on the table for how to approach Afghanistan, and said those options included a full withdrawal as well as a proposal for the use of more contractors to manage the US effort there.
Mattis added that all options for a new strategy in Afghanistan, including the use of private security contractors, remain under consideration by Trump.
The plans could lead to sending an additional 3,000-4,000 US troops to Afghanistan, but the president reportedly has been frustrated by his options in the nearly 16-year-old conflict and has considered firing the US commander in Afghanistan.
"We're sharpening each one of the options," Mattis said. "You can see the pluses and minuses of each one so that there's no longer any new data you are going to get. Now, just make the decision. There's the options."
In response to a question on whether Trump had confidence in Gen. John Nicholson, the US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, he said: “He is our commander in the field. He has the confidence of NATO.”
“He has the confidence of Afghanistan. He has the confidence of the United States, and the President again is looking at all aspects of our effort over there as he must in his responsibilities as the commander-in-chief,” he said.
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PacificSentinel: I hope these idiots in Washington realize that a complete withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan would be a betrayal of the soldiers that died and their families, it would also give other nations reason to think twice about supporting US operations in the future.