MONITORING (SW) – The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said troops’ withdrawal risks turning Afghanistan into a safe haven for terrorists again.
He said this in an interview with the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag. He said the Taliban have failed their promise to reduce violence and cut ties with terrorist groups.
Pointing to an “unacceptable level” of violence by the Taliban, Stoltenberg said that no NATO member wanted to stay in Afghanistan any longer than necessary. “The coming days and weeks are important. The first meeting of NATO defense ministers with the new US administration is coming up, and I expect the allies to deliberate intensively on the future of NATO’s presence in Afghanistan,” the secretary general said.
On Wednesday Feb.17, the NATO defense ministers would meet and decide about the Alliance’s military presence in Afghanistan.
Days ahead of the NATO defense ministers meeting, the Taliban insurgents also warned the Alliance against extending its stay in Afghanistan. “Our message to the upcoming NATO ministerial meeting is that the continuation of occupation and war is neither in your interest nor in the interest of your and our people. Anyone seeking extension of wars and occupation will be held liable for it just like the previous two decades”, the group announced on Saturday.
Last week, Commander of the US Central Command, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, said earlier this week that level of violence in Afghanistan remains ‘too high’ and that the US is reviewing the Taliban actions as well as the peace agreement.
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