President Donald Trump's warning to Pakistan that it must stop harboring terrorist organizations and the Taliban represents "a radical shift" in U.S. policy that could improve the situation in war-torn Afghanistan, according to analysts.
Late Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported "more than 12,000 U.S. troops" are stationed in Afghanistan, a figure the paper noted was "about 3,500 more than" the Pentagon has publicly acknowledged.
The Journal reported "another 3,900 troops" will be sent to Afghanistan under the president's new strategy, bringing the total number to "about 16,000 troops." It cited unnamed defense officials.
Some believe the time is overdue for Washington to declare Pakistan a terrorist state and to consider sanctions against individuals or entities in the Islamic country linked to militant and terror groups fighting the U.S.-led coalition forces in Afghanistan. There are also reports suggesting Pakistan's intelligence services may be helping to finance ISIS-affiliated terrorists in Afghanistan.
The thinking goes that if you apply pressure on Pakistani elements supporting Sunni extremist groups, such as the Taliban and al-Qaeda, then it could turn things around in Afghanistan by choking off money and the route from Pakistan into Afghanistan. Money flows to the terror groups through the illicit drug trade, which travels along these same routes.
Reference: CNBC
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/
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