Afghan Diplomat Does Not Think US Troops Presence Currently Plays Important Role

Afghan Ambassador to Russia Said Tayeb Jawad expressed the belief, in his interview with Sputnik, that US troops presence was no longer playing an important role for the military activities, reiterating that the Afghan government expects Washington to have a responsible approach to the planned withdrawal

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th February, 2021) Afghan Ambassador to Russia Said Tayeb Jawad expressed the belief, in his interview with Sputnik, that US troops presence was no longer playing an important role for the military activities, reiterating that the Afghan government expects Washington to have a responsible approach to the planned withdrawal.

"The war in Afghanistan is conducted almost 100 percent by the Afghan security forces. The role of the international troops, NATO or US, in the fight against Taliban and terrorism has reduced tremendously. In fact, Taliban are proud of saying that they don't fight Americans and don't kill Americans.

They are proud that last year, since they signed the Doha agreement, no American has been killed. I don't think that the formation or the presence of the foreign troops makes a big difference on the results of the war but we expect NATO and the US to have a responsible approach on the withdrawal and also to provide their financial resources both for the security forces of Afghanistan but also for the development of the country," Jawad noted.

Foreign troops are no longer "an important player on the battlefield," the ambassador stressed.