Statement from the President

Nearly 19 years ago, American service members went to Afghanistan to root out the terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks. In that time, we have made great progress in Afghanistan, but at great cost to our brave service members, to the American taxpayers, and to the people of Afghanistan. When I ran for office, I promised the American people I would begin to bring our troops home, and seek to end this war. We are making substantial progress on that promise.

Soon, at my direction, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will witness the signing of an agreement with representatives of the Taliban, while Secretary of Defense Mark Esper will issue a joint declaration with the government of Afghanistan. If the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan live up to these commitments, we will have a powerful path forward to end the war in Afghanistan and bring our troops home. These commitments represent an important step to a lasting peace in a new Afghanistan, free from Al Qaeda, ISIS, and any other terrorist group that would seek to bring us harm. Ultimately it will be up to the people of Afghanistan to work out their future. We, therefore, urge the Afghan people to seize this opportunity for peace and a new future for their country.

I thank the hundreds of thousands of American warriors who have proudly served in Afghanistan. We have killed or captured many ISIS and Al Qaeda terrorists. We honor your service and the sacrifices you and your families have made for the American people. These agreements are a result of the strenuous efforts of those who fought so hard in Afghanistan for the United States of America.

Have you been there?

I have. It’s worlds away from anything most Americans imagine, and we gain nothing from remaining. Ever wonder what it would have been like to live in a castle during the dark ages? That’s Afghanistan—heavily barricaded, small fortifications surrounded by enemies who attack sporadically. I laughed at the sensational reports about the rocket attacks on Baghdad—all told not equal to a good week in Bagram, Kandahar, Kabul, much less Shorab or Tarin Kot!

Don’t get me wrong—we have great troops who have fought bravely for decades. All the same, you can’t win if you don’t have a goal. Don’t give me some bs platitude about “fighting over there” or bringing democracy to the masses. Unless you have some realIstic ideas about an end game.

Our allies are our worst threat and many FOBs are literally surrounded by ANA. I’d rather talk with the Taliban, because at least you know where they stand.

We’ve spent billions and Afghanistan is still Afghanistan. Afghanis aren’t coming to the states to wage jihad—most of them will never travel 100 kilometers from where they were born! They’re illiterate and impoverished people who are skilled only at defending their lands against centuries of invaders.

If you want to talk about terrorists—you need to look at the Arab Spring states. Iraq, Syria and Libya are where we need to focus. We don’t need troops on the ground there either—we need to just keep them out of our country!

It’s past time to get out.

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