US officials have raised the possibility of a complete military withdrawal from Afghanistan for the first time, as Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in Washington for three days of discussions over military and economic ties.
In a briefing for journalists in advance of Karzai’s visit, US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said the White House is prepared to consider all options for US troop levels after 2014, including a so-called “zero option” if conditions allowed.
Karzai today is to hold his first face-to-face talks with US President Barack Obama since last year’s NATO summit in Chicago. The Obama administration is committed to withdrawing the majority of its 68,000-strong military stationed in Afghanistan by the end of next year — with the size of the remaining force still to be decided, as well as the key question of legal immunity for US military operating in the country post-2014.
The talks between the two governments were “not aiming to keep a certain number of US troops in Afghanistan,” said Doug Lute, deputy assistant to Obama and White House coordinator for South Asia. The final number would be “significantly lower” than the 68,000 troops currently on the ground, Lute said.
Asked if the troop level options included zero, Rhodes replied: “That would be an option we would consider.”
The White House warned that no agreements or decisions are expected to result from this week’s visit by Karzai, describing it as “a good time for the two presidents to sit down and consult” ahead of the US military draw-down and the Afghan elections scheduled for April 2014.
General John Allen, the NATO commander and top US general in Afghanistan, has recommended keeping between 6,000 and 15,000 troops in the country after 2014. However, the Afghan leader is said to want an end to US military operations in villages, as well as protection from militants based across the border with Pakistan.
The final number of any US forces in Afghanistan after 2014 would depend on the perceived strength of al-Qaeda and its affiliates in the country, the progression of Afghan security forces and the legal protection granted to US forces by the Afghan government — the last a sticking point in the bilateral security agreement being negotiated between the two governments with a deadline of November this year.
Karzai also wants the US to provide helicopters, heavy weapons and other advanced military equipment for Afghanistan’s army, as well as warplanes for the Afghan air force, and for humanitarian and reconstruction aid to be channeled through Afghan government ministries rather than via Western aid agencies. Kabul has accused the US of fostering corruption by giving funding directly to warlords.
Officials are also to broach the on-again, off-again peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government.
The prospects for talks has been helped by Pakistan’s recent release of groups of imprisoned Taliban commanders, including eight people on New Year’s Eve, following an improvement in the Afghan-Pakistan relations that are crucial to any hopes of a peaceful settlement.
Hopes have been further raised by a meeting in France between the Taliban and the Afghan High Peace Council last month, which US officials have described as “promising.” Direct talks with the Karzai government have been ruled out by the Taliban, which wants to negotiate with the US government, while the US says that the Taliban should speak directly to the Afghan government.
The Afghan leader was also scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday — who is back at work after hospitalization — as well as outgoing US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese