The United States will send another 3,500 troops to Afghanistan, making the U.S. forces count in the country about 14,500, according to new reports.
(Twitter)
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said a week ago that he had signed orders to send additional troops to Afghanistan, but did not say how many at the time.
(Twitter)
President Donald Trump announced in August his revamped strategy for fighting the war in Afghanistan. He made it clear the United States was going to defeat terrorists and win the 16-year war there, even though the details were vague and non-existent.
The message was clear: the U.S. is going to finish the job in Afghanistan, but the President won’t say how or when, aside from saying the U.S. Military will be given the tools it needs to get the job done, and that the military will be able to operate on the ground as it sees fit.
While it was previously stated that there are about 8,400 service members in the country, officials recently said that number was closer to 11,000 troops.
Trump is now the third president in 16 years to surge troops to Afghanistan. About six years ago, there were roughly 100,000 U.S. service members in the country.
A timeline of the U.S. in Afghanistan can be seen here.
