John Kirby: Syria strike was about protecting US troops in Iraq
Pentagon Press Secretary joins 'Your World' to provide an assessment of the military mission
If you thought President Joe Biden’s posture toward endless wars was going to be different than his predecessors, last month’s airstrikes against Iranian proxies in Syria suggest otherwise.
They were a stark reminder that our leaders have perpetuated wars and military engagements that do not make our nation safer. Quite the contrary, troops have been repeatedly put in harm's way without clear, achievable objectives.
As someone who experienced this firsthand, I’m convinced it’s time for a change.
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I joined the Army just after high school and deployed to Afghanistan twice as a Green Beret. During my first deployment, President Bush was in office and the United States had been in Afghanistan for six years. I deployed again a year later, this time during President Obama, and when the United States would increase the number of troops in the country to nearly 100,000.
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By that time, the United States largely accomplished what was necessary in Afghanistan by punishing the Taliban and degrading Al Qaeda’s main branch. Usama bin Laden would be dead by 2011. Despite this, the war would continue morphing into open-ended nation building, muddling on for another 10 years.
President Trump made real progress bringing troops home from overseas engagements, most significantly by negotiating the Doha agreement between the United States and the Taliban. That agreement set a timeline for troop removal from Afghanistan, but U.S. withdrawal looks to be on shaky ground as the deadline quickly approaches.
Now it’s Biden’s turn to take the wheel on Afghanistan. The administration has postponed its verdict for months, even sending Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to visit personally with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. But there is no amount of time or negotiation that will mitigate the need for a firm decision.
As the fourth commander in chief to oversee the longest war in American history, Biden should reject the status quo as a viable option and stick to the deadline.
Any extension invites permanent commitment and undermines the peace process by sending problematic signals to the corrupt Afghan government and the Taliban.
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Suggesting we stay in Afghanistan a few more months or try a new approach is reckless and an insult to those who have sacrificed there. If 20 years and trillions of dollars haven’t achieved sufficient results, more of the same won’t get us there now.
I’m not alone in this opinion. In a recent poll conducted by my organization, Concerned Veterans for America, results show the majority of veterans, military families and the general population would support withdrawing all troops from Afghanistan. Majorities of each also support full withdrawal from Iraq.
This tells us that Americans, and specifically the military community, are done fighting wars that have no foreseeable end.
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America accomplished what it set out to do in Afghanistan, and remaining will needlessly risk lives in pursuit of a mission that war proponents cannot or will not articulate. As someone who has put himself in harm’s way and continues to serve, I expect better from our leaders.
Biden campaigned on finally bringing an end to America’s endless wars. For the sake of those still deployed, their families, and the American people, the president should take this opportunity to bring our troops home from Afghanistan and pursue a foreign policy that better serves our interests.