Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.), a combat veteran of the War in Afghanistan, issued the following statement on the signing of the Afghanistan peace deal:

“I’m hopeful but skeptical about this Afghan Peace Deal. I applaud the Trump administration’s willingness to take bold, decisive action to move Afghanistan towards peace and I’m hopeful this as a historic day for my fellow veterans and the millions of Afghans who have suffered. 

“However, I have two big concerns: the reality of pulling all U.S. troops out on a 14-month withdrawal timeline and the terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan. 

“If we remove our presence in Afghanistan too quickly, the ethnic minorities historically opposed to the Taliban will rearm, fracture the Afghan Army and create a vacuum for a new resurgence of ISIS and Al Qaeda. We could find ourselves in a much more precarious situation where America is fighting its way back to a sustainable position without local allies, losing even more US soldiers along the way. 

“The agreement also says little about terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan, where ISIS and Al Qaeda are headquartered. 

“Even if — and that’s a big “if” —the Taliban are sincere and join forces with the Afghan Army, they both lack the military capabilities to keep Al Qaeda and ISIS at bay, meaning a U.S. military presence will still be required. 

“The status quo is not great and there has been much sacrifice — but it has kept America safe for two decades and doing this agreement the wrong way could make this much worse. I look forward to being briefed on the details of this hopefully historic agreement soon.”