‘Don’t rush withdrawal,’ Afghan government warns ahead of key Nato meeting

American soldiers wait on the tarmac in Logar province, Afghanistan

Credit: Rahmat Gul /AP

America and its allies must not rush their troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, a senior Afghani government negotiator has warned, as Nato ministers meet to discuss a troop pullout.

Nader Nadery said the Taliban were not keeping their end of Donald Trump’s withdrawal deal and Afghan forces needed foreign help to push back against a wave of militant violence.

His comments came as ministers including Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, were on Thursday due to discuss troop levels in the 19-year-long campaign.

Joe Biden’s new administration is currently reviewing Mr Trump’s Doha deal with the Taliban, under which US troops must quit the country by May.

Mr Nadery told the Telegraph: "We have a sense of urgency for peace, but if we are to preserve our gains and values and achieve a lasting peace, we should avoid a rushed process. It will serve against the core objective of a lasting peace.”

Under Mr Trump’s deal, American troops would leave in exchange for the Taliban beginning political talks with their Afghan government enemies and preventing terrorists such as al-Qaeda using the country as a base for attacks.

Nearly a year after it was signed, American troops have fallen from 14,000 to only 2,500, but talks have barely begun and violence is unrelenting. Intelligence assessments say the Taliban are still protecting al-Qaeda.

Mr Nadery said Afghan forces remained reliant on US military “enablers” such as air power.

“The complete withdrawal was one commitment from the United States, against the other conditions that the Taliban need to be meeting,” he said.

“If the Taliban did not meet yet their commitments, it is then up to the United States to decide how they will deal with that situation. We would need to push back against the violence together and for that we would — I believe — need the enablers."

Nato has a total of 9,600 troops in Afghanistan. Mr Trump’s deal only applies to American troops, but military analysts say the other Nato members, including the UK which still has around 850 troops in Afghanistan, are unlikely to stay without US muscle.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Germany’s defence minister, on Thursday also said peace talks had not made sufficient progress to allow a withdrawal of foreign troops.

Mr Biden has come under pressure to extend the US troop presence beyond May, to try to pressure the Taliban into negotiating with Ashraf Ghani’s government.

Yet diplomats and generals also admit there is no military solution to the conflict and the Taliban are also likely to view any such extension as a breach of the deal and pull out of the fragile talks process.

Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the Washington-based Wilson Centre. said: “The Taliban has repeatedly said all US troops must be out on May 1.

“Its single biggest propaganda talking point for years has been about expelling foreign troops. It has always been unwavering on this issue.”