US defense official on Monday said President Trump’s desires to get troops “home by Christmas” has rung chaos among NATO allies as they reiterate their “presence” stance in the conflict ravaged Afghanistan. NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu from Brussels underlined that the alliance’s stance over troops has not changed and that it will continue to adjust its presence. She added that no NATO ally wants to stay longer than necessary but it is also important to protect the gains with such sacrifice.
NATO’s mission Resolute Support has about 16,000 forces from 38 nations of which 12,000 have their presence in Afghanistan. More than half of these security forces are “non-US forces”, added Lungescu.
She said NATO allies that rely on US logistics will continue to consult on the Afghan mission that was established in 2015 under the UN Security Council resolution.
It will be a coordinated process based on conditions on the ground, Lungscue added.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General, Jens Stolenberg and US Defense Secretary, Chris Miller emphasized on the importance of coordination with regard to NATO Missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. The peace process between Washington, Kabul government and Taliban has shown little progress due to increasing violence in the recent months. President Trump during the election campaign had emphasized for the US forces in Afghanistan to return home by Christmas.
