华盛顿——美国参谋长联席会议主席、陆军上将马克·米利表示，美国“有可能”寻求与美军协调塔利班在阿富汗打击伊斯兰国激进分子或其他人的反恐行动。
米莉没有详细说明，他周三的评论似乎没有暗示立即与塔利班合作的计划。
过去三周，美国军事指挥官每天都在喀布尔机场外与塔利班指挥官进行协调，为12.4万多人的撤离提供便利。但这对双方来说都是一个方便的问题，不一定是他们未来会追求甚至想要一种正常关系的迹象。
美国军方在2001年秋天将塔利班赶下台，并在随后的19年里与他们作战。
既然战争已经结束，美国和塔利班关系的程度和性质是需要解决的关键问题之一。美国在喀布尔的外交机构已经转移到卡塔尔的多哈。总统乔·拜登最近几次注意到塔利班是阿富汗伊斯兰国组织的公开敌人，这表明他们与美国有着共同的利益。
在五角大楼与国防部长劳埃德·奥斯汀的新闻发布会上，米莉称塔利班是“无情的”，并补充说，“他们是否会改变还有待观察。”他认为，最近在喀布尔机场与塔利班的合作安排不一定是未来的模式。
“在战争中，你必须做你必须做的事情，以减少任务和部队的风险，而不是你必须想做的事情，”米莉说。
拜登承诺将进一步打击阿富汗的伊斯兰国组织，以回应上周在喀布尔机场门口发生的伊斯兰国自杀式炸弹袭击，此次袭击造成数十名阿富汗人和13名美国军人死亡。周六，美国军方在阿富汗实施了一次无人机袭击，据称造成两名信息系统策划者死亡。周二，拜登说，“对ISIS-K:我们还没有和你说完”，指的是IS组织。
如果没有美国军队在当地，也没有友好的政府部队与他们分享关于极端主义网络的情报，针对伊斯兰国激进分子或基地组织等其他极端主义团体将会更加困难。但拜登政府声称，它可以通过监控和潜在打击该地区其他地方的资产来遏制这些团体。
尽管塔利班反对IS，但现在还不清楚他们是否会倾向于与美国军方或中央情报局合作，因为他们已经在喀布尔重新掌权。米莉最近与塔利班领导人有过接触;去年两次，最近一次是在12月，他与他们进行了面对面的会面，试图减缓他们对美国支持的阿富汗政府的攻击，该政府于8月中旬垮台，引发了以美国为首的疯狂撤离。
奥斯汀听起来至少和米莉一样怀疑最近几天在喀布尔机场的协调是否暗示了未来与塔利班的关系。
“我不会对更广泛的问题进行任何逻辑跳跃，”奥斯汀说。
奥斯汀和米莉在20年的战争中都指挥过驻阿富汗部队，他们在周三的新闻发布会上的评论主要集中在对那些在阿富汗服役的人的悼念上，包括那些死亡或受伤的人。他们还感谢所有为最终空运做出贡献的人，奥斯汀称之为美国历史上最大规模的平民撤离。
米莉和奥斯汀敦促退伍军人认为他们的服务是值得的，并受到美国公众的赞赏，同时承认回忆可能是痛苦的。
“战争是艰苦的。太恶毒了。太残忍了。这是不可原谅的，”米莉说。“是的，我们都有痛苦和愤怒。当我们看到过去20年和过去20天发生的事情时，就会产生痛苦和愤怒。”
随着美国卷入战争的结束和所有美国军队撤离该国，拜登正在努力应对与塔利班建立新关系的前景。他已责成国务卿安东尼·布林肯与国际伙伴协调，让塔利班信守承诺，为美国人和其他想在未来几天离开的人提供安全通道。
美国中央司令部司令、海军陆战队上将弗兰克·麦肯齐(Frank McKenzie)形容美军在撤离期间与塔利班的关系“非常务实、非常务实”，称他们帮助确保了机场的安全。但是来自阿富汗人民的其他报道描述了枪击、暴力和塔利班阻止绝望的阿富汗人通过大门的行动。
拜登星期二在全国讲话中为他结束美国持续时间最长的战争并在8月31日最后期限前撤出所有美军的决定进行了辩护。
“我不会延长这场永远的战争，”拜登在白宫宣布。“我也不会永远退出。”
拜登因其对疏散的处理受到严厉批评，尤其是来自共和党的批评。但他表示，不可避免的是，前总统唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)于5月1日首次与塔利班谈判的20年战争的最终脱离将是困难的，可能会出现暴力，无论是在何时计划和进行的。
“对于那些要求在阿富汗进行第三个十年战争的人，我要问，‘什么是至关重要的国家利益?’”拜登说。他补充说，“我根本不相信继续在阿富汗部署数千名美国士兵和花费数十亿美元会增强美国的安全和保障。"
Milley: US coordination with Taliban on strikes 'possible'
WASHINGTON -- Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it's “possible” the United States will seek to coordinate with theTalibanon counterterrorism strikes in Afghanistan against Islamic State militants or others.
Milley did not elaborate, and his comment Wednesday did not appear to suggest immediate plans to work with the Taliban.
U.S. military commanders coordinated daily with Taliban commanders outside the Kabul airport over the past three weeks to facilitate the evacuation of more than 124,000 people. But that was a matter of convenience for both parties and not necessarily a sign that they will pursue, or even want, a regular relationship in the future.
The U.S. military ousted the Taliban from power in the fall of 2001 and fought against them for the 19 years that followed.
The extent and nature of a U.S.-Taliban relationship, now that the war is over, is one of the key issues to be worked out. The U.S. diplomatic presence in Kabul has been moved to Doha, Qatar. PresidentJoe Bidenhas noted several times recently that the Taliban are avowed enemies of the Islamic State group in Afghanistan, suggesting a shared interest with the United States.
At a Pentagon news conference with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Milley called the Taliban “ruthless” adding, “Whether or not they change remains to be seen.” He suggested that the recent cooperative arrangement with the Taliban at Kabul airport was not necessarily a model for the future.
“In war you do what you must in order to reduce risk to mission and force, not what you necessarily want to do,” Milley said.
Biden has promised further targeting of the IS group in Afghanistan in response to the IS suicide bombing last week at a Kabul airport gate that killed scores of Afghans and 13 American service members. On Saturday the U.S. military carried out a drone strike in Afghanistan that it said killed two IS planners. On Tuesday, Biden said, “To ISIS-K: We are not done with you yet,” referring to the IS group.
Targeting Islamic State militants or other extremist groups, such as al-Qaida, will be more difficult with no U.S. military forces on the ground and no friendly government forces with which to share intelligence on extremist networks. But the Biden administration asserts that it can contain these groups by monitoring and potentially striking with assets based elsewhere in the region.
Although the Taliban oppose IS, it's far from clear that they will be inclined to work with the U.S. military or the Central Intelligence Agency now that they have regained power in Kabul. Milley has recent experience with Taliban leaders; twice last year, most recently in December, he met face-to-face with them in an attempt to slow their attacks on the U.S.-backed Afghan government, which collapsed in mid-August, triggering the frantic U.S.-led evacuation.
Austin sounded at least as skeptical as Milley regarding the possibility that the coordination in recent days at the Kabul airport suggests a future relationship with the Taliban.
“I would not make any leaps of logic to broader issues,” said Austin.
Both Austin and Milley commanded troops in Afghanistan during the 20-year war and their comments at Wednesday's news conference largely focused on tributes to those who served in Afghanistan, including those who died or were wounded. They also thanked all who contributed to the final airlift, which Austin called the largest evacuation of civilians in American history.
Milley and Austin urged war veterans to view their service as worthwhile and appreciated by the American public, while acknowledging that the memories can be painful.
“War is hard. It’s vicious. It’s brutal. It’s unforgiving,” Milley said. "Yes, we all have pain and anger. When we see what has unfolded over the last 20 years and over the last 20 days, that creates pain and anger.”
With the U.S. involvement in the war over and all American military out of the country, Biden is grappling with the prospects of a new relationship with the Taliban. He has tasked Secretary of State Antony Blinken with coordinating with international partners to hold the Taliban to their promise of safe passage for Americans and others who want to leave in the days ahead.
Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command, has described the U.S. relationship with the Taliban during the evacuation as “very pragmatic and very businesslike,” saying they helped secure the airport. But other reports from people in Afghanistan described shootings, violence and Taliban moves to block desperate Afghans from getting through the gates.
Biden in an address to the nation Tuesday defended his decision to end America's longest war and withdraw all U.S. troops by an Aug. 31 deadline.
“I was not going to extend this forever war,” Biden declared from the White House. "And I was not going to extend a forever exit.”
Biden is coming under heavy criticism, particularly from Republicans, for his handling of the evacuation. But he said it was inevitable that the final departure from two decades of war, first negotiated with the Taliban for May 1 by former President Donald Trump, would have been difficult, with likely violence, no matter when it was planned and conducted.
“To those asking for a third decade of war in Afghanistan, I ask, ‘What is the vital national interest?’" Biden said. He added, "I simply do not believe that the safety and security of America is enhanced by continuing to deploy thousands of American troops and spending billions of dollars in Afghanistan.”
