Well, i dont know is more to watch. More americans are currently in hospital with corona virus than at any time in the pandemic. So far, 79000 people are currently admitted as infection rates climb. Schools have been shut in new york city in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. And california has just imposed a curfew. Americans have been advised not to travel for the thanksgiving holiday next week. Pump aoe has become the 1st u. S. Secretary of state to visit an illegal israeli settlements in the occupied west bank and the occupied golan heights. Its the latest and most controversial leg of his 10 day tour of the middle east and europe. At least 16 people have been killed in uganda during protests. By the arrest of Opposition Leader bobby wine, 350 people were arrested Security Forces shot at supporters of the pop star turned politician. The fight is known to great region is moving ever closer to the areas capital. The countrys Prime Minister says his forces all closing in on mecca. Hes also promised to bring back more than 30000. Refugees have fled to neighboring sudan. A year late is looks in a budget standoff, putting a multibillion dollar Coronavirus Relief package in jeopardy, poland and hungary vetoed the budget earlier this week. Officials are anxious to approve the 7 year budget, which includes 887000000000. 00 in support for its a connellys from to recover from the power to make those the headlines. The news continues on, which is there is the u. S. President rushing Foreign Policy decisions before leaving office on terms with drawing troops from afghanistan and iraq, and reportedly considering tougher action on iran. So with only 2 months left, what legacy could he leave for joe biden . This is inside story. Hello, im come all santamaria promising to bring a countrys troops home is the kind of thing which in the right circumstances can help win an election and 2020. Donald trumps already lost the election and is now in a mad scramble to bring u. S. Forces back to the United States from afghanistan and iraq. Before he leaves office in just 2 months. Acting secretary of defense, Christopher Miller made the announcement on tuesday after a lot of speculation in the media. The plan is to bring troop numbers down to 2 and a half 1000 in both countries. That would be a reduction of 2000 in afghanistan, 500. 00 in iraq. And to do that by january 15th, next year, remember that would be just 5 days before joe biden becomes president and commander in chief of the armed forces. And you might think this would be the type of thing which would draw support from trumps republican party, especially as he battles to leave some sort of legacy. But have a listen to this. Senate majority leader, mitch mcconnell, usually an odd and backer of the president. A rapid withdrawal of u. S. Forces from afghanistan now would hurt our allies and the light the light. The people who wish us harm violence of fucking afghans are still rampant. The taliban is not about and by the conditions of the socalled peace deal. The consequences of a premature american exit would likely be even worse than president obamas withdrawal from iraq. Back in 2011, which view fueled the rise of isis and a new round of global terrorism. Not just for a bit of context, here is how u. S. Troop numbers in afghanistan have looked since the invasion in 2001. There was a big surge under president obama who took office in 2009, reached a peak of almost 110000 troops in 2011, or the next 4 years. That was a big cuts right down to 10000, troops and then under president trying to pin some modest increases just at the end of the graph there. But when you look at the bigger picture, this is all american troops overseas. They have been on the decline for years, including as you see, a shop initial decrease when Trump Took Office in 2017. And donald trump may be considering moves on other Foreign Policy issues as well. U. S. Media say senior advisers managed to talk the president out of a military strike on irans main nuclear site. Warning it could trigger a wider conflict and his administration is preparing to label yemens hooty rebels as terrorist. Remember, these are the ones backed by iran, so its a major demand from saudi arabia. But the u. N. And u. S. Allies like germany, oppose this. All right, so here is todays panel in kabul. He moves the Founding Member of the afghanistan, affairs unit think tank in washington d. C. , john walsh, Senior Program officer on afghanistan at the United States institute of peace and a regular contributor here in doha marwan couple on the director of Political Studies at the arab center for research and policy studies, gentlemen, thank you for joining us on inside story. Johnny, ill start with you. Seeing as this is where the stories come from from the white house from washington. I figured there are 2 ways to look at this. You could either say this is donald trump, doing what he always said he would. And in fact, what a lot of president s say they will do, or hes just doing it because hes run out of time. And i think all i need something in these last 2 months. Its probably the latter, isnt it . Well, i think that its very consistent with what present instincts have pointed him towards since the very beginning, even when he 1st announced an increase in troops at the beginning of his presidency. He said this is to explain the opposite direction and were seeing the fruits of that. Now, i think that the main thing that has prevented a complete withdrawal of troops both previously and now is the fact that the Peace Process that president from did have a significant role in authorizing has made a lot more progress than one might have expected. At the outset, and that is one of the main reasons giving incentive to keep. The latest numbers are 2500 troops down from 4500. And i suspect that while this allows President Trump to say that he has made a further significant reduction, it probably doesnt change the strategic situation at the negotiating table all that much. Because the u. S. Still has a lot of leverage with that number of troops and the taliban recognize that they cant win a war. They kind of have to negotiate with many troops saying, and country. Tell me about that leverage before i bring in our other guests. Just quickly tell me about that leverage because you have what to 200000 troops who are primarily there to support and train the afghan Security Forces themselves so they can do their job. Tell me about that. Leverage, well, im not a military planner and well have to see exactly what general miller, the head of the u. S. Force in kabul decides to do with those 2500. But thats still tied. Yes. Now tied for our Largest Military combat commitment in the world. And that still gives a pretty considerable platform to not just Train Afghan Forces and take strikes at counterterrorist groups, but to provide air support as needed. If there are major engagements on the ground. To prevent any insurgent groups from potentially swarming, a major city or serious that threatening a large contingent on forces. So its been true for a long time. Forces are doing the overwhelming majority of the fighting, but with a small amount of what we call enablers. Which often means air support, medical evacuation. You can make a huge difference in their fortunes on the battlefield, their combat capability and the time on recognize that. So even at this reduced number, it really constrains any gains that they could theoretically make on the battlefield. And that is one of the core dynamics that i think encourages all sides to negotiate because this war is very stalemated when those side, having any obvious prospect of a battlefield victory there for talks, or maybe a better alternative. Much talk about him in kabul. Lets get the perspective from their journeys explaining there that actually the Afghan Forces are doing a lot of the work themselves these days and that the u. S. Forces while they are still important. Whats your take on that . How significant is it to still have 2 and a half 1000 u. S. Troops there . C. B. S. Thought as the comeback mission is going to star in confronting the taliban is concerned. You all know that since 2014 it has been all the up on forces who have been battling them and keeping ad big from all of the military objectives that they got about have had off to 2014, military would jot of the interNational Forces. But you know, the presence of front of National Forces chillis the commitment of the International Community towards yob, on government orders up on state and state institutions. And continuation on back presence has always given the particular more doubt and military more out to be. Not to the military, i would search through the fighting forces of the outline army and up on national police. Have been seeing off Development Challenges across the country. Now these are ready, good decisions have off course, have hacked, its impact on what sites it has given the fall of more got age to challenge in terms of or toying the stat state and government or state system. And only i decide i have sent a message to the ottoman forces that the interNational Forces are drawing down. Considering the fact that the only cognize that time has been a personality change with a lot of arbitrary Decision Making, a lot of credit go Decision Making. And doing his litter box, not priest, which is ending. And in couple of months time that is appealing it up on a stand that hes giving his last ditch effort to achieve at least something out of his stomach. So then do you think green sasson . Thats right. In this administration sworn in, sorry to interrupt you. Do you agree, then, much talk with the likes of nato, some e. U. Countries, germany who are allies of the United States and who are all voicing a lot of concern about the stroll down and saying it needs to be done in a more measured way. Indeed, and thats what the feeling of the opera people end up on government has been that of course, the interNational Forces have to go one day and that is not a lot of weight as far as the International Strategy stance on International Community strategist and starts about up on a stand, they have to go through and let the operands of big believed big gradual shift has already happened, starting in 2000, and then the gradual handle. What of that is sponsibility to the oblon forces. Now we are in a bit critical stage where the peace negotiations are going on, and its all about politics, the leverage, enjoying the politics of support, which is going to help. What sides make decisions that can contribute toward spotted dick a 2nd mental yup. Im going to read a good Decision Making like this. Again, disrupt can give credits to one side to do a lot of banks meant ship. Im try to have more to seek more concessions on the negotiation deal. But rather than having an objective constitution, i objected negotiation. So were going to have an impact on this. And it too, has released that concern as well. Some 0 in kabul on a need to help because i cant decide theres a lot of good arguments here both ways. One saying that actually the troops have been drawing down for a long time. Actually the Afghan Forces have been in charge for a long time, but then also this other side that this other idea that as much talk was just saying a quick decision like this. It leaves a void very quickly, which do you think it is . But come on, i think we have to think of this decision, but he much too i. Its mainly driven by the mystic politics. But i didnt dump him in an election promise to withdraw. They was troops from afghanistan, from iraq and to end. And this was mean, this is what he said actually during his election campaign, i think he was surprised that he was, he did not win the election. He did not expect, in fact to lose. So this is why, in my opinion, hes an excellent it in that when theyre one of you is toast, he got to call the consequences for his allies without in iraq and has done so malia he just went actually to adopt a policy of cuts and run the idea is hes military is not allowing him to do that because hes trying to do it in syria if you dont become a lot when he doing that quote unquote, with the president of the gun. When he just so prized almost everybody including his secretary of defense jim at this and he decided to believe they were strobes problem from syria and allowed to actually to go. And i think now hes almost planning everybody who was opposing an ace policy of withdrawing from from syria and iraq. He did actually fire his sick of the, of the u. S. Last last week because Everybody Knows actually that markets as i was actually trying to control it, say that with the, one of the, of us was especially from afghanistan because he, that he thought that such a has to do with oil will be actually having a bad consequences for the National Interests of the United States. And also what is allies it would give that impression that the United States actually doesnt care much about its allies. Its abandoning its abandoning its abandoning them because at most broadly if they were stocks with a lot to gain from a goddess don thought about it would open up my company. I mean, weve all, we all know downs and in iraq we know that that withdrawal asked you would drop by you, actually in iraq would have also agreed to expanding the influence of iran when a but anyway, the us withdrawal from and the region of the war it actually is speeding to increasing competition between the regional right police in iraq. You have to get on to saudi arabia and afghanistan. You have pakistan. Lot of iran have a shot and already china and india. So everybody is really concerned. They were allies and you are the us allies on the ground in afghanistan and iraq. They are all consent by what the president might be doing from now and january 20 when he is when he, when he leaves, when he leaves office and so on. The up, but that the main idea is to actually disses. This policy is completely driven by domestic competitions by the president. Most notably one was to 10 his supporters that i almost fell for all the promises that i made during my election campaign. So this is my dick, i see probably if he is going to run for that 2024 elections, he will bring the war these issues back and build on guys when i was the president. I did this. I can do right. Ok at moments a different take. I want to come back to you shortly when i want to talk about some other issues of iraq and iran in the hope these johnny, ill just come back to you. In the meantime. The peace talks, one of you either your much talk mention them, but there was, there was the deal which the us signed with the taliban. And now there are the ongoing Afghan Taliban peace talks. How much more important, johnnie . Did those become when you have the specter of more troop withdrawals from afghanistan now . Well, i think that these peace talks were the only realistic prospect of a happy ending to the war in afghanistan. Before this is now mend and they remain the only realistic prospect of a good ending. Now, as i mentioned earlier, the battlefield is really badly still needed. Perhaps as one says, that still it would break if the u. S. Withdrew altogether at dont know. But it was quite historic that the Afghan Government and taliban started negotiating directly with each other for the 1st time in a decades of conflict. Just a couple of months ago. Many have pointed out the different ways in which those talks have slowed down and they have, i dont think anyone should be surprised at that when such a difficult longstanding conflict is kind of coming to the negotiating table for the 1st time. There is a huge opportunity here and the u. S. With this smaller presence and think still has quite a bit of leverage, as i said on both sides to keep nudging them towards a deal. Ultimately, of course the sides have to make their own decision. No external party can make it for them whether they want to explore peace. But this will take time. It will take months and months at the same time. Its the most important thing going on, the afghan political scene, and it really does have some chance of ending this conflict. And in due course, much talk, i was looking back at the deal which the u. S. And the taliban signed. I think that was back in february and part of it was saying they u. S. Would agree to a full withdrawal within 14 months. If the taliban were to keep its commit. Its 2 quick thoughts from you. What are those commitments and are they being kept . And in fact, would this drawdown of further troops actually help the situation . Potentially it will in theory. Well, thats part of the meeting, the requirements. Its going sign. There were 2 major which have been agreed rat that out about are prepared to talk with the Afghan Government and the truck. But you know, the level of in the wild and the cost of not 6 months has put everybody off. And the beast that the whole world is actually ongoing Peace Process has typically been damaged because people are expecting that with the progress on the negotiation table, theres been some deduction and wasnt an ideological cloak. The budget by just get stronger and get strength and thats not as the out. Not going to conflict context, but unfortunately to get to a spike in off parts of the country. The taliban have a chat and the i want government and private records may just cities that were the sort of situation in which we are living right now. And i thought of t