Mattis: New Strategy in Afghanistan Destroys Insurgents' Hope for Victory Through Violence

Reports indicate that James Mattis, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, and Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General, traveled to Afghanistan on Wednesday, October 5. On the same day, militants targeted Kabul Airport with suicide attacks, mortars, and rockets. During his visit to Kabul, General Mattis held a press conference alongside NATO's Secretary General and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, where he outlined the new U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, emphasizing that through our partnership, we will eliminate the hope of Al-Qaeda, ISIS (Islamic State), Haqqani, or the Taliban to achieve victory through violence. The U.S. Secretary of Defense stressed that the goal of the new U.S. strategy in Afghanistan is to defeat insurgent groups, including the Taliban. However, he did not provide details on the increase of U.S. forces under the new strategy. General Mattis stated: 'I prefer not to speak specifically about the number of troops. We will be sending more American forces. Coalition member countries will also send more troops to Afghanistan.' He added: 'I do not tell the enemy exactly what we will do. But I emphasize that we will have military superiority against any Taliban action.' The U.S. Secretary of Defense also said: 'I want to emphasize that the only way for them (the Taliban) to gain legitimacy and peace is through participation in negotiations.' According to Agence France-Presse, General Mattis also stated: 'We will not leave Afghanistan to fall into the hands of a ruthless enemy that wants to seize power through violence.' Reuters reports that hours after General Mattis's arrival in Kabul, militants attacked by firing rockets and mortars and detonating several suicide vests near the main entrance of the airport. The Taliban and the Islamic State claimed responsibility for these attacks. Afghan forces responded to the militants' assault on the airport and took action against them. Afghan government officials also stated that several civilians were killed in U.S. airstrikes supported by Afghan forces. The NATO mission led by the U.S. in Afghanistan stated that American forces acted to support Afghan special forces and that during an airstrike, a missile malfunctioned, unfortunately resulting in casualties. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, announced his administration's new strategy regarding Afghanistan on August 30, which includes increasing the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Mr. Trump said he initially intended to withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan, but his advisors convinced him to bolster them to prevent the Taliban's advance and the potential fall of the Afghan government. The U.S. President described the Afghanistan war as 'the longest war in American history.' However, Donald Trump criticized the 'hasty withdrawal' of U.S. military forces from Iraq, stating that this withdrawal led to the rise and strengthening of ISIS and that the United States should not allow a similar occurrence in Afghanistan.