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Home » Trump Says Afghanistan Meeting ‘Very Good,’ but Falls Short of Announcing Deal
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Trump Says Afghanistan Meeting ‘Very Good,’ but Falls Short of Announcing Deal

Arif RafiqBy Arif RafiqAugust 16, 2019
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U.S. President Donald Trump and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meet at the United Nations General Assembly on October 2, 2017. (Image Credit: White House)
U.S. President Donald Trump and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meet at the United Nations General Assembly on October 2, 2017. (Image Credit: White House)
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U.S. President Donald Trump convened his top national security advisers this afternoon at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey to discuss a draft peace agreement with the Afghan Taliban insurgent group. Talks between the United States and the Taliban are in their final stretch, with CNN reporting on Thursday that a deal between the two is “99 percent complete.”

Trump took to Twitter this evening to describe the high-level meeting on Afghanistan as “very good.” He struck an optimistic note, stating that many within the insurgency “are looking to make a deal” to end the war that has lasted nearly eighteen years, though he also included the caveat of “if possible.” As of Friday night, there has been no indication of whether the president assented to a final agreement.

Just completed a very good meeting on Afghanistan. Many on the opposite side of this 19 year war, and us, are looking to make a deal – if possible!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 16, 2019

Some observers, including officials in the administration, expect Trump to reveal his decision first on social media. He did exactly that with respect to Syria last December.

Getting out of Syria was no surprise. I’ve been campaigning on it for years, and six months ago, when I very publicly wanted to do it, I agreed to stay longer. Russia, Iran, Syria & others are the local enemy of ISIS. We were doing there work. Time to come home & rebuild. #MAGA

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2018

Thomas Joscelyn, a researcher at the neoconservative Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, told the New York Times that several U.S. government officials have shared with him their belief that Trump will eventually make his announcement on an Afghanistan withdrawal via Twitter.

And it is through Twitter that Senator Lindsey Graham urged the president throughout the day to not agree to a full U.S. withdrawal, which he claimed would strengthen the hand of transnational jihadist networks, like al-Qaeda.

In the morning, Graham called on Trump to learn from what he described as the “mistakes” of President Barack Obama and avoid a “bad agreement.” Graham also said that any deal with the Taliban should be “vetted” by the U.S. Congress—indicating that he would use his standing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to create problems for the administration should it seek to fast-track a withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Mr. President, learn from President Obama’s mistakes.

A bad agreement puts the radical Islamist movement all over the world on steroids.

Be smart, take your time, and listen to your national security team.

— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) August 16, 2019

It’s very important that any agreement be fully vetted and understood by Congress and the American people.

— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) August 16, 2019

And this evening, after Trump tweeted about the meeting, Graham once again asserted that the United States must maintain “a robust counterterrorism force with intel capability” in Afghanistan.

Must have robust counterterrorism force with intel capability no matter what Taliban demands in order to protect the USA.

— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) August 16, 2019

In addition to Trump’s Twitter feed, all eyes are on Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, the administration’s special envoy in charge of talks with the Taliban. He is expected to return to Doha, Qatar, to resume dialogue with the Taliban. Even if Trump says nothing about his plans for Afghanistan in the coming days, Khalilzad will fill in the blanks with his itinerary and public statements, including through Twitter.

Arif Rafiq

Arif Rafiq is the editor of Globely News. Rafiq has contributed commentary and analysis on global issues for publications such as Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, the New Republic, the New York Times, and POLITICO Magazine. He has appeared on numerous broadcast outlets, including Al Jazeera English, the BBC World Service, CNN International, and National Public Radio.

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