19 Apr 2024
Tuesday 24 January 2017 - 14:45
Story Code : 248274

Taliban to Trump: Pull out troops or face 'shameful defeat'



Press TV- Taliban militants in Afghanistan have called on the new US president,Donald Trump, to withdraw American forces from the "quagmire" of the war-torn country or face shameful defeat".

In an open letter to Trump published on one of its official webpages, the group said nothing has been achievedin 15 years of occupation except bloodshed and destruction.

"So, the responsibility to bring to an end this war alsorests on your shoulders," it said, addingtheUS haslost credibility after spending a trilliondollars on a fruitless entanglement.

Some 8,400 UStroops remain in Afghanistan and Washington says they are there to train and supportlocal forces and fight terrorists. However, the Taliban have gone from strength to strength and even Daesh terrorists have now found a foothold in the country.

Trump has said little publicly aboutAfghanistan but two of his top militaryappointments -General James "Mad Dog"Mattis as Pentagon chief and former GeneralMichael Flynn as national security adviser - formerly commanded US occupation of the Central Asian country.

Trump has also sharply criticized past presidents for failed policies and the mishandling of conflicts in the Muslim world, Afghanistan included.



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] US Secretary of Defense James Mattis (R) is greeted by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford as he arrives for the first day January 21, 2017 at the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by AFP)[/caption]

In their letter, the Taliban warned Trump against relying on thekind of "unrealistic" reports presented to former presidents bytheir generals.

"They would emphasize continuation ofwar and occupation of Afghanistan because they can have betterpositions and privileges in war," the letter said.

The group said the US was occupying Afghanistan while Washingtonwould not accept foreign forces on its territory or even in a neighboring country.

"You have to realize that the Afghan Muslim nation has risenup against foreign occupation," it said.

The Taliban havemade steady inroads against thegovernment in Kabul since occupation forces said they endedtheir main combat mission in 2014, with troopsnow incontrol of only two thirds of the country.

The Taliban warned thatif the US "insists on continuing her failed arrogant policies, one can foresee that she will ruin herself beyond repair due to a historically shameful defeat."

Fifteen yearsafter the occupation, the economic and security situation across Afghanistanhas become even worse than it was before the American invasion.

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