Trump backs Afghanistan withdrawal, putting him at odds with some Republicans

Washington — Former President Donald Trump on Sunday expressed support for pulling U.S. military forces out of Afghanistan, calling a withdrawal "wonderful and positive," but pushed back on President Biden's September 11 deadline for leaving the country.

Mr. Trump said in a statement he believes the U.S. should leave Afghanistan earlier than when Mr. Biden has called for, and took credit for laying the groundwork for American troops to leave the country before September 11, the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that launched the U.S. into its longest war. "I made early withdraw possible by already pulling much of our billions of dollars and equipment out and, more importantly, reducing our military presence to less than 2,000 troops from the 16,000 level that was there," he said.