Al Jazeera News :
Politicians from across the world have reacted to US President Donald Trump’s new strategy for the war in Afghanistan. Trump on Monday committed the US to an open-ended conflict in Afghanistan and signalled he would send more troops there. He insisted that the Afghan government, Pakistan, India and NATO allies step up their own commitment to resolving the 16-year conflict. He hit out at Pakistan, which he said was offering safe haven to “agents of chaos, violence and terror”. Allies of the US have welcomed the strategy, pledging military and financial support to Afghanistan, while others remained skeptical.
Here’s a round-up of reactions from leaders around the world. Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani welcomed the strategy, saying it would increase the capacity of the training mission for Afghan forces.
Trump’s plan could enhance Afghanistan’s fledgling air force and double the size of the Afghan special forces, he said. Trump’s speech showed America was “with us, without any time limit”, Ghani told troops on Tuesday in southern Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban. Urging the Taliban to join talks, Ghani said: ” You cannot win this war.” A Taliban spokesman meanwhile warned Trump was only “wasting” American soldiers’ lives.
“If America doesn’t withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, soon Afghanistan will become another graveyard for this superpower in the 21st century,” the Taliban’s Zabiullah Mujahid said.
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai wrote on Twitter that he “very strongly” opposed the new US strategy, saying it was “against peace and the national interest of Afghanistan”.
He said: “The strategy excludes bringing peace and prosperity to Afghanistan and is focused on more war and rivalry in the region. [The] US must seek peace and stability in Afghanistan rather than extending conflict and bloodshed in Afghanistan and the region.”
A Pakistani army spokesman dismissed Trump’s remarks, saying Pakistan had taken action against armed groups on its soil. “There are no terrorist hideouts in Pakistan,” spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.
Pakistan’s foreign minister met with US ambassador David Hale and reiterated the country’s “desire for peace and stability in Afghanistan”, a statement by the foreign ministry said.
He “underlined Pakistan’s continued desire to work with the International Community to eliminate the menace of terrorism,” the statement. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Trump’s “conditions-based approach” and said the US-led alliance was committed to increasing its presence in Afghanistan.
Politicians from across the world have reacted to US President Donald Trump’s new strategy for the war in Afghanistan. Trump on Monday committed the US to an open-ended conflict in Afghanistan and signalled he would send more troops there. He insisted that the Afghan government, Pakistan, India and NATO allies step up their own commitment to resolving the 16-year conflict. He hit out at Pakistan, which he said was offering safe haven to “agents of chaos, violence and terror”. Allies of the US have welcomed the strategy, pledging military and financial support to Afghanistan, while others remained skeptical.
Here’s a round-up of reactions from leaders around the world. Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani welcomed the strategy, saying it would increase the capacity of the training mission for Afghan forces.
Trump’s plan could enhance Afghanistan’s fledgling air force and double the size of the Afghan special forces, he said. Trump’s speech showed America was “with us, without any time limit”, Ghani told troops on Tuesday in southern Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban. Urging the Taliban to join talks, Ghani said: ” You cannot win this war.” A Taliban spokesman meanwhile warned Trump was only “wasting” American soldiers’ lives.
“If America doesn’t withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, soon Afghanistan will become another graveyard for this superpower in the 21st century,” the Taliban’s Zabiullah Mujahid said.
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai wrote on Twitter that he “very strongly” opposed the new US strategy, saying it was “against peace and the national interest of Afghanistan”.
He said: “The strategy excludes bringing peace and prosperity to Afghanistan and is focused on more war and rivalry in the region. [The] US must seek peace and stability in Afghanistan rather than extending conflict and bloodshed in Afghanistan and the region.”
A Pakistani army spokesman dismissed Trump’s remarks, saying Pakistan had taken action against armed groups on its soil. “There are no terrorist hideouts in Pakistan,” spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said.
Pakistan’s foreign minister met with US ambassador David Hale and reiterated the country’s “desire for peace and stability in Afghanistan”, a statement by the foreign ministry said.
He “underlined Pakistan’s continued desire to work with the International Community to eliminate the menace of terrorism,” the statement. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Trump’s “conditions-based approach” and said the US-led alliance was committed to increasing its presence in Afghanistan.
