KABUL: The Afghan Taliban told US President Donald Trump in an open letter on Tuesday that the military situation in Afghanistan was “far worse than you realise”, and sending in more troops would be self-destructive.

A senior Taliban official said the rare decision to address Trump directly was timed to coincide with the president’s deliberations on the future of US policy in Afghanistan.

“Previous experiences have shown that sending more troops to Afghanistan will not result in anything other than further destruction of American military and economical might,” the Taliban said in the lengthy English-language letter.

It criticised the Afghan government as “stooges”, “lying, corrupt leaders” and “repulsive sell-outs” who were providing Washington with “rosy pictures” of the military position.

The Taliban have waged an increasingly violent insurgency against the Western-backed Afghan government since losing power in a US-led invasion after the Sept 11 attacks in 2001. Those attacks were planned by Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden from a base in Afghanistan.

“The war situation in Afghanistan is far worse than you realise!” the letter said, arguing that the only thing preventing the Taliban from seizing major cities was a fear of causing civilian casualties.

The senior US commander in Afghanistan, General John Nicholson, has requested several thousand additional troops to act as advisers to the struggling Afghan security forces. Influential voices including Republican Senator John McCain have also urged an “enduring” US military presence in Afghanistan.

But such plans have faced scepticism in the White House, where Trump and several top aides have criticised years of American military intervention and foreign aid.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters on Monday that the Trump administration was “very, very close” to a decision on Afghanistan, adding that all options were on the table. However, US officials believe it could take weeks for a South Asia strategy to be approved.

“We have noticed that you have understood the errors of your predecessors and have resolved to thoroughly rethink your new strategy in Afghanistan,” the Taliban told Trump.

“A number of warmongering congressmen and generals in Afghanistan are pressing you to protract the war in Afghanistan because they seek to preserve their military privileges.”

Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2017