Sources: The complete withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan ‘for all intents and purposes’

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Besides security forces, the two officials said, the only US military personnel left to withdraw by the September 11 deadline, set by Biden in May, are General Scott Miller, the commander of US forces in Afghanistan, and a few staff members. The US Central Command announced Tuesday that the withdrawal is 90 percent complete, and the last US troops on Friday left Bagram Air Force Base, the focal point of the US war effort over the past 20 years.

In addition, the US military must also withdraw the remaining security and logistical forces that were temporarily sent in this spring to enable the withdrawal, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement to POLITICO.

Kirby said, “While the withdrawal is 90% complete, it has not. Temporary enabling forces remain in the theater and focused on providing security for a safe and orderly withdrawal. As long as these forces and some contractual support remain there, the withdrawal continues.”

Kirby added that the planned leadership transition from Miller and General Frank McKenzie, the commander of US Central Command, has not yet occurred, and the mission of Resolute Support to NATO continues.

Kirby told reporters on Friday that Miller is currently on an official trip but is expected to return to Afghanistan. He said the general will remain in the country for the next few weeks to help facilitate the transition of the Afghanistan mission to McKenzie.

The second US official said the main reason for Miller’s stay was to raise the morale of the Afghan security forces, which have suffered from escalating attacks by the Taliban across the country over the past few months. The attacks have intensified in recent weeks, with the Taliban controlling 10 percent of the country in the past six days alone, according to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), which has followed the conflict closely.

Overall, the Taliban control 188 of the country’s 407 districts, and are competing for 135 more, according to the Foundation for Defense of Democracy.

After the US exit from Bagram on Friday, Afghan officials accused the US of leaving in the dead of the night without notifying the new Afghan commander of al-Qaeda, who reportedly found out about the matter two hours after the troops left. Electricity and lights were suddenly turned off as the Americans left.

Kirby disputed that characterization on Tuesday, telling reporters that Afghan civilian and military leaders had been “coordinated with and appropriately briefed” on the personnel change. But US military commanders did not inform the Afghans of the exact time of their departure due to “operational security reasons”.

“We had to work on the assumption that this withdrawal could be appealed at any time,” Kirby said. “We are very careful about what we say and how much detail we provide there, but there has been coordination.”

When the final relocation took place at Bagram, Pentagon spokesman Major Rob Ludwick said Wednesday that electricity and water services became the responsibility of Afghan forces. So far, he said, US forces have provided Afghan training on how to manage and operate the facility’s systems at Bagram.

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