U.S. to Withdraw Thousands of Troops from Afghanistan and Iraq by January

With two months left in office, President Trump is making good on a campaign promise by ordering the pentagon to withdraw thousands of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan before his term is up. Acting secretary of defense Christopher Miller made the official announcement yesterday that the u-s will withdraw thousands more troops from the two countries by January 15th, which is just days before president-elect Joe Biden takes office. Miller said the withdrawal will leave approximately 2,500 troops in Afghanistan and roughly the same number in Iraq. Currently there are approximately 4,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan and 3,000 troops in Iraq. Miller also added that it “does not equate change” to any of the U.S. policies. A senior defense official said yesterday’s announcement is “consistent” with what Trump publicly announced earlier this year and is “consistent with his promise to the American people.” The decision has some speculating that the president could move to reduce the number of u-s forces in other countries as well.