WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th June, 2021) Afghanistan may collapse into civil war after the full US military withdrawal is completed, commanding General Austin Miller said on Tuesday.
"Civil war is certainly a path that can be visualized," Miller, a four-star general, told a rare press conference in Kabul at US and NATO forces headquarters, the New York Times reported. "That should be a concern for the world."
Miller was speaking after a recent successful Taliban offensive seized control of some 100 regional centers, mainly in the northwest of the country.
The United States after 20 years in Afghanistan could not hope to impose a military solution as it has tried to do for almost two decades but had to seek a compromise political settlement, Miller stated.
"It is a political settlement that brings peace to Afghanistan. And it's not just the last 20 years. It's really the last 42 years," Miller said, as quoted by the Times.
The newspaper noted that US officials expect the entire withdrawal of their forces from the country will be completed in less than a week by the July 4 national holiday, Miller steered clear of committing to that date, referring only to the September 11 cutoff deadline referred to by President Joe Biden in April.
