President Obama’s nominee to be the next commander in Afghanistan said Thursday that the security situation in the war-torn country is deteriorating and assured senators that he will do a thorough review of American troop levels needed to stabilize the nation.
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Army Lieutenant General John Nicholson told the Senate armed services committee on Thursday that stopping the growth of the Islamic State and the re-emergence of al-Qaida in the theater of America’s longest war will be his “first and foremost” priority.
“As the security situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate, it makes no strategic or military sense to continue the withdrawal of American forces”, Mr. McCain said.
There are now about 9,800 US soldiers in Afghanistan. He said they do have some shortcomings “that simply take years and years to develop” – such as such as intelligence collection and air support. Nicholson, who has served about 3 1/2 years in Afghanistan, would receive a fourth star and likely take command of U.S. Forces Afghanistan and NATO’s Resolute Support mission in March.
He commanded the 82nd Airborne Division, reestablishing global response force capabilities, and commanded NATO’s Allied Land Command.
He later called the efforts by the Islamic State and al-Qaeda in 2015 “clear attempts by a trans-national terrorist organizations to establish sanctuary inside Afghanistan”. President Obama has called for a reduction to a force of about 1,000 based at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul by 2017, but senior commanders have pressed in recent days to push that off indefinitely.
Campbell has called for the United States to maintain its 9,800 troops in Afghanistan at least through the end of the year.
Nicholson also acknowledged that those troop level decisions will require military planning in late spring, to prepare commanders for operational changes. Lindsay Graham (R-SC), who asked if a lower US troop presence in Afghanistan could lead to another terrorist attack similar to those seen on September 11, 2001 on USA soil.
“We’re not trying to create a Western-style society here”, Nicholson said.
Though several senators enthusiastically endorsed Nicholson’s nomination, his confirmation still needs to be approved by the full Senate. The House Armed Services Committee said this week that Campbell will testify on the situation in Afghanistan next Tuesday.
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“Conditions on the ground in Afghanistan today clearly demand an immediate re-evaluation of scheduled American troop withdrawals”, said McCain, the committee’s chairman.
