Trump frustrated that US is not “winning” in Afghanistan, considers firing top general

President Donald Trump receives a briefing on a military strike, 2017 (Commons)

The President of the United States is starting to have doubts on whether or not America can win an unwinnable war.

President Donald J. Trump’s concerns about the war in Afghanistan has lead to delays in regard to completing a new strategy for the region, complete with suggestions that the top commander in the theater of war may be fired for not “winning.”

The suggestions came during a July 19 meeting in the Situation Room, when -according to officials present at the time- the president reportedly demanded national security aides provide more details on Afghanistan’s “end-state” and suggested that Defense Secretary Mattis and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joseph Dunford relieve US Army General John Nicholson for not winning the war.

“We aren’t winning,” Trump reportedly told those in the meeting.

Shortly after the meeting, Trump strategist Steve Bannon reportedly go into a “shouting match” with White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster over US policy.

Some officials -who, according to Reuters, wished to remain anonymous- were left “stunned” by the president’s assertions that the military was allowing the US to lose the war in one of the world’s most historically un-conquerable countries.

Trump has long been both critical and skeptical of America’s current level of involvement in foreign wars and has repeatedly shown little interest in deploying US troops without a complete plan- one encompassing where they will go, what they will do and how long they will be there.

During the meeting, the president also expressed his opinion that the United States should demand a share of Afghanistan’s estimated $1 trillion in mineral wealth as a form of repayment for the assistance provided to the Afghan government and citing that the Chinese are currently profiting from mining operations. However, other officials noted that until the entire nation of Afghanistan is under friendly control, there is little to no way to get the minerals to markets other than Iran.

The White House had no comment on the accounts of the meeting and a follow-up meeting of top aides is scheduled for Thursday.


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