Today's D Brief: Afghanistan's big day at the WH; Interpreter evac planned; Space Force eyes cis-lunar missions; And a bit more.
By Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
June 25, 2021
The D Brief
The U.S. will keep nearly 650 service members in Afghanistan after its 9/11 withdrawal date, the Associated Press reports this morning. And that’s both significant and fairly expected news ahead of President Joe Biden’s afternoon meeting at the White House with Afghanistan’s top two leaders, President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation. (Ghani and Abdullah will also visit the Pentagon Friday just before noon to meet with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.)
Those 650 will “provide security for diplomats” after the main element of U.S. troops exits the country, which is expected to be completed by Independence Day here stateside.
Another “several hundred” U.S. forces will stay on at Kabul’s main airport to help the modest but soon-to-be growing Turkish contingent tasked with providing security there. That U.S. element isn’t expected to stay beyond the month of September. But the U.S. troops are expected to keep a system designed to shoot down artillery, known as a C-RAM, at the airport — as well as some rotary-wing assets and personnel. Read more at AP, here.
https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2021/06/the-d-brief-june-25-2021/174969/
