Acting Pentagon boss cites risks of troop reductions

WASHINGTON — The coming period of U.S. troop withdrawals from Afghanistan and Iraq is “fraught with risk,” but the military will not hesitate to strike back if extremists attempt to undermine the transition to a smaller U.S. force in those countries, the newly installed acting secretary of defense said Wednesday.

Speaking at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Christopher C. Miller, who served in both Afghanistan and Iraq as an Army Special Forces officer, said President Donald Trump’s order to cut the U.S. military presence to 2,500 troops in those countries by Jan. 15 was a step toward ending the wars responsibly.

Chuck Hagel, a Republican who served as defense secretary in the Obama administration, said that Trump should have left troop reduction decisions to President-elect Joe Biden, since the new administration will have to deal with the consequences of American troop withdrawals.

“It sends a clear signal to the Taliban” and strengthens their hand in negotiations with the Kabul government, said Hagel, who stressed that he favors finding a way to end U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan without sabotaging the government’s chances of achieving a viable peace deal. “This is not going to end well for the Afghan government.”

On Wednesday, two House members who are veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — Democrat Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Republican Adam Kinzinger of Illinois — sent a letter to Miller and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo requesting answers to numerous questions about the ramifications of Trump’s decision, including how the troop pullouts will affect stability in Iraq and Afghanistan.