US Joint Chiefs Chairman: "Possibility of Terrorist Groups Rebuilding Amid Afghan Civil War"

Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Mark Milley, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated on the 4th (local time) that with the U.S. withdrawal, Afghanistan is likely to be divided by civil war and terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda may be rebuilt.

In an interview with Fox News on the same day, Milley said it was "too early to judge" whether the U.S. is safer after the withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Milley said, "My military assessment is that the situation is likely to develop into a civil war," adding, "I am not sure if the Taliban can consolidate power and establish governance."

Recently, security in Afghanistan has been extremely unstable, including the Islamic State (IS) attack on Kabul airport. Milley predicted, "The possibility of a broader civil war is at least quite high, and this could lead to conditions for the reorganization of Al-Qaeda or the growth of IS or many other terrorist groups."

He also added, "Since U.S. troops are not stationed in Afghanistan, maintaining security and intelligence gathering has become more difficult," and "We will need to maintain a very strong level of indicators, warnings, surveillance, and ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) across the entire country (of Afghanistan)."

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