Uncertainty Swirls Around US Pullout from Afghanistan

WASHINGTON - Days after U.S. President Joe Biden announced his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan and end the United States' longest-running war, military planners, despite having had months to deliberate, are still working on how to make that happen.

The Defense Department on Friday declined to share details about the impending pullout of some 2,500 to 3,500 troops from Afghanistan, saying that preliminary plans are being updated and that the final so-called tasking orders will come "very, very soon." Officials also left open the possibility that more troops could be sent in, on a temporary basis, to help ensure a safe and orderly withdrawal. "We'll know more as we get closer, but that would not be out of the realm of the possible," press secretary John Kirby told reporters Friday, in his first briefing at the Pentagon since the announcement. "I can't speak today with exactly what that would look like," Kirby added. "It's logical to assume that you may need some logistics help, maybe some engineering help. You may have to add some force protection capabilities."