MOSCOW — A Taliban representative says the U.S. has promised to withdraw half of its troops from Afghanistan by the end of April.
Speaking on Wednesday on the sidelines of a meeting in Moscow between the Taliban and other prominent Afghan figures, Taliban official Abdul Salam Hanafi said that U.S. officials have promised that the pullout will begin this month.
Hanafi said: “The Americans told us that from the beginning of February to the end of April, half of troops from Afghanistan will be withdrawn.”
He added that the U.S. and the Taliban will each create a technical committee that “will work on a timetable for the withdrawal of remaining troops.”
There was no immediate response from the U.S. but the Pentagon has reportedly prepared plans to withdraw half its 14,000 troops by the summer.
The Associated Press
