Defense Secretary and Joint Chiefs Chair on U.S. Withdrawal from Afghanistan

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair General Mark Milley held a briefing at the Pentagon to discuss the end of the military mission in Afghanistan. After saying that “America’s longest war has come to a close,” Defense Secretary Austin said that “my thoughts have been with the brave Americans who stood up to serve after al-Qaida attacked us on September 11, 2001. And my heart is with their families and loved ones.” General Milley said that even though the military mission has concluded in Afghanistan, they will continue to evacuate American citizens under the direction of the State Department as “this mission has now transitioned from a military mission to a diplomatic mission.” During their remarks, they announced that there have been approximately 6,000 Americans and 124,334 civilians evacuated from Afghanistan. close