The U.S. military may work with Taliban terrorist groups in the future, the chief military officer said Wednesday.
Asked if the United States would coordinate with the Taliban in the future, General Mark Milley said it was “possible.”
“I don’t want to make predictions in the future,” added Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
“We say we’ll do everything we can to stay focused on ISIS-K. Understand the network and take responsibility for what they did when making future choices. He mentioned ISIS affiliates claiming responsibility for the August 26 suicide bombing attack on US troops in Kabul.
The Taliban gained control of Afghanistan in mid-August after defeating US-backed Afghan troops after most US troops withdrew from the country.
The United States hastily returned thousands of military personnel to Kabul, but only to secure an airport there and allow the evacuation of about 122,000 people.
During the evacuation, Taliban terrorists dominated the exterior of the facility while US troops detained the airport. The United States has worked openly with terrorist groups to share the identities of some Americans who wanted to flee the country so they could pass checkpoints.
“The United States relied on the Taliban” to protect us, “” General Kenneth Mackenzie, Jr., commander of the US Central Army, said in a briefing last week.
At some point, the Pentagon confirmed that a few Americans had been beaten by Taliban fighters.
The cooperation has received harsh criticism from Republicans.
“It’s ridiculous to think that we put the safety of Americans in the hands of the Taliban,” Senator Steve Daines (R-Mont.) Said last week.
US officials have defended the deal, arguing that a large number of people need to be evacuated.
“We don’t know what the future of the Taliban is, but from my personal experience, this is a ruthless group from the past and we still don’t know if they will change,” said the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Millie said on Wednesday.
“And when it comes to dealing with them at that airfield or in the last year or so of war, it’s not always what you want to do, but what you have to do to reduce the risk to your mission and power.” He said. ..
The U.S. government and the military were criticized by both parties for leaving as many as 200 Americans in Afghanistan, including up to 30 elementary school students from California, when the troops left on August 30.
Austin emphasized that he could have done better and admitted that there was no perfect operation, but hesitated to identify the shortcomings until a post-action review was done. Millie defended the August 29 drone strike, killing several civilians, calling it a “legitimate strike,” and claiming that the procedure was carried out and at least one ISIS member was killed.
Authorities also provided the first concrete figures in days for the number of Afghan refugees currently in US soil after being airlifted from Kabul.
As of Wednesday morning, approximately 20,000 Afghans are being held at eight different military bases in the United States.
An additional 43,007 people are in staging locations in nine countries, including four in Europe.
Austin called the evacuation “historic” and took pride in what the US military had accomplished.
“We have just finished the evacuation of the largest civilian in American history. It was heroic. It was historic. And I think all Americans are for their courage and their compassion. I hope to unite to thank our military personnel, “he said.
Zachary Stieber covers US news, including politics and proceedings. He started in The Epoch Times as a Metro Reporter in New York City.