The Pentagon has said the alleged presence of “terrorist safe havens” along the Pak-Afghan border was causing instability inside Afghanistan and therefore the US was in talks with Pakistani leadership for “closing down” such sanctuaries.
Addressing reporters in Washington during a press briefing on Monday, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said “we all have a shared sense of importance of closing down those safe havens and not allowing them to be employed by the Taliban or other terrorist networks to sow discord.”
“We’re also mindful that Pakistan and therefore the Pakistani people also fall victim to terrorist activities that emanate from that very same region,” he remarked.
He underlined that the US was helping Afghan forces during a myriad of other ways. “The Afghans have capacity; they need capability, they need a capable Air Force,” he stressed.
The spokesperson was asked to supply substantiation of his statement on Afghan forces being equipped as six provincial capitals in Afghanistan had already been lost to the Taliban.
Kirby said: “I have the proof that they need a force of over 300,000 soldiers and police. they need a contemporary Air Force. they need modern weaponry; they need an organisational structure. they need tons of benefits that the Taliban do not have . Taliban doesn’t have an Air Force, Taliban doesn’t own airspace…”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKqUNEiSGhc
To another query about India’s role in Afghanistan, the Pentagon spokesperson remarked that India had played a “constructive role” in Afghanistan within the past in terms of “training and other infrastructure improvements”.
When asked a few prospective role for Pakistan and India in Afghanistan, the spokesperson said, “We want all neighbouring countries to not take actions that make things in Afghanistan more dangerous than it’s already,” he underlined.
He urged Afghanistan’s neighbour countries to still attempt to use international pressure to urge a negotiated peaceful political settlement to the present war.
