by Madison Dibble
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley said the 18-year mission in Afghanistan is not over.
American troops have been in Afghanistan since 2001 following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 more than 18 years ago. Some of the soldiers carrying out U.S. military operations in Afghanistan today were not born yet when the twin towers fell.
During a Sunday interview on ABC’s This Week, Milley was asked how he justifies fighting in Afghanistan for so long. He pointed to the start of the war as to why Americans must stay and fight.
“I think we have to go back to the original reason why we are in Afghanistan to begin with, which is 9/11. So, we went there in order to make sure that Afghanistan never again would be a haven, a safe haven, to terrorists that would attack the United States. That mission is not yet complete,” he explained.
He added, “In order for that mission to be successful, the government of Afghanistan, the Afghan security forces are going to have to be able to sustain their own internal security to prevent terrorists from using their territory to attack other countries, especially the United States. That effort's ongoing.”
Milley noted that he doesn’t expect the mission to be completed anytime soon.
“It’s been ongoing for 18 consecutive years. I suspect it will be ongoing into the future for several more years,” he stated.
He explained that U.S. forces will remain in the Middle East as long as it is in the country’s national interests.
President Trump has advocated for removing troops from the Middle East, including his decision to pull U.S. forces from northern Syria.
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