On Thanksgiving: Donald Trump visits US troops in Afghanistan

(Patria) – US President Donald Trump on Thursday made an unannounced visit to US troops in Afghanistan, his first visit to a country with which the US has been at war since 2001.

Trump, after a meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, revealed to reporters that he had renewed negotiations with the Taliban, and that the US would remain in Afghanistan 'until a deal is reached or a complete victory is achieved, and they very much want a deal'.

Recall, previous negotiations with the Taliban, which had neared an agreement, were halted in September after plans for their representatives to come to Camp David fell through. The situation escalated following the death of a US soldier, and Trump declared the talks 'dead'. Sergeant Elis Barreto Ortiz was killed in a suicide attack just before the negotiations were to be concluded. In 2019 alone, 19 US soldiers lost their lives in Afghanistan in a helicopter crash, and more than 2,400 since the start of the war in 2001.

The al-Qaeda attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania, in which 2,977 people lost their lives and which were supported by the Taliban, led to the US invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001.

Afghan President Ghani publicly thanked the Americans, whom he said had made the 'ultimate sacrifice', and noted that the number of US soldiers killed in combat had decreased during Trump's term. Ghani claims that Afghan security forces will now take the lead.

Violence in Afghanistan continues; in a single car bomb attack on Wednesday, 15 people lost their lives – mostly women and girls heading to a wedding.

The Taliban recently released a US and an Australian citizen from prison after three years, as part of an exchange. 

Trump has repeatedly announced that the US would reduce the number of troops in Afghanistan, and on Thursday confirmed that the current force of 8,600 would be reduced to 5,000.

The US president visited a military base where he celebrated Thanksgiving with the soldiers.

White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham told reporters that the president and the First Lady 'are aware that many people are far from their homes during the holidays, and we thought this would be a pleasant surprise', writes the British Guardian.