{"id":64812,"date":"2019-07-31T15:04:30","date_gmt":"2019-07-31T15:04:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/07\/31\/pompeo-backtracks-on-afghanistan-withdrawal-by-fall-2020\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T12:41:01","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T12:41:01","slug":"pompeo-backtracks-on-afghanistan-withdrawal-by-fall-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/07\/31\/pompeo-backtracks-on-afghanistan-withdrawal-by-fall-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Pompeo backtracks on Afghanistan withdrawal by fall 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday backtracked on comments suggesting a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/07\/29\/secretary-of-state-trump-wants-troops-out-of-afghanistan-before-the-2020-election\/\" target=_blank>massive U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan before the 2020 election<\/a>, flatly stating \u201cthere is no deadline\u201d for the end of the American mission there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In response to reporters\u2019 questions en route to a diplomatic trip to Thailand, Pompeo criticized the press for misinterpreting his earlier answers for when<a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/07\/29\/secretary-of-state-trump-wants-troops-out-of-afghanistan-before-the-2020-election\/\" target=_blank> the nearly 18-year-old military conflict<\/a> will come to a close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThey got it wrong,\u201d he said. \u201cThe president has been very direct about his expectations that we will reduce our operational footprint on the ground in Afghanistan just as quickly as we can get there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI hope they\u2019re out not only before the next election, but before we land today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/07\/29\/secretary-of-state-trump-wants-troops-out-of-afghanistan-before-the-2020-election\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_19176530731125.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Secretary of state: Trump wants troops out of Afghanistan before the 2020 election<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The comments came just a few hours before U.S. officials announced two more military deaths in the country.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A day earlier, during an appearance at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., Pompeo was asked \u201cbefore the next presidential election in the United States, would you expect we reduce our troops in Afghanistan?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He responded by saying \u201cThat&#8217;s my directive from the president of the United States. He&#8217;s been unambiguous. End the endless wars, draw down, reduce.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He also added that \u201cit&#8217;s not only my expectation, it would be job enhancing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The comments had raised new confusion about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/flashpoints\/2019\/07\/28\/taliban-reject-talk-of-direct-negotiations-with-afghanistan-government\/\" target=_blank>the administration\u2019s plan for Afghanistan<\/a>, where U.S. military forces currently have about 14,000 troops deployed in train-and-advise missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">President Donald Trump has repeated promised to end U.S. involvement in the conflict, saying he doesn\u2019t see America\u2019s role as \u201cthe policeman of the world.\u201d But he has also increased the number of American service members in Afghanistan since taking office, and said that military commanders have advised him against any near-term withdrawal from the current missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump also raised concerns among Afghan allies earlier this month when he suggested that if America wanted to get out of the conflict quickly, Afghanistan \u201cwould be wiped off the face of the Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2019\/07\/31\/army-identifies-two-soldiers-killed-in-afghanistan\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"170\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screen-Shot-2019-07-30-at-21.59.34.png.png?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Army identifies two soldiers killed in Afghanistan<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The Army has identified the two U.S. soldiers killed in a reported insider attack Monday.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pompeo downplayed any confusion over the messages coming from the White House.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe will have an orderly plan for how we\u2019re going to maintain our counter-terrorism posture in the region,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s really not much news here other than as each day goes by, we\u2019re getting closer to getting an understanding from all the parties in Afghanistan about how we would deliver this better outcome&#8230;\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s the mission the president has laid out, and we\u2019re working our way there. I hope in the next handful of weeks we\u2019ll have significant progress we can announce.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tuesday night the Army identified the two U.S. soldiers killed in Afghanistan in a reported insider attack Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pfc. Brandon Jay Kreischer, 20, of Stryker, Ohio, and Spc. Michael Isaiah Nance, 24, of Chicago died in Afghanistan while supporting Operation Freedom\u2019s Sentinel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both soldiers were members of Company B., 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-army\/2018\/01\/25\/last-82nd-airborne-paratroopers-who-jumped-at-d-day-describe-their-experience\/\" target=_blank>82nd Airborne Division<\/a> when they were killed by small arms fire, division officials said in a release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The paratroopers died from wounds sustained in a \u201ccombat related incident\u201d in Tarin Kowt, Uruzgan Province, according to a Pentagon press release.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Earlier in the week, the secretary of state suggested a major troop withdrawal before the 2020 presidential 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