The United States is preparing to pull thousands of troops from Afghanistan, part of an early agreement to potentially end the 18-year war, according to recent reports.
But so far, the Pentagon says it has received no orders to return service members home en mass.
"DoD has not been ordered to draw down," Commander Rebecca Rebarich, a Department of Defense spokeswoman, said in a statement to Connecting Vets. "Our strategy in Afghanistan is conditions-based; our troops will remain in Afghanistan at appropriate levels so long as their presence is required to safeguard U.S. interests."
The drawdown was first reported by The Washington Post Thursday. The newspaper said the U.S. was preparing the drawdown "in exchange for concessions from the Taliban, including a cease-fire and a renunciation of al-Qaeda."
The Post story, based on anonymous government official sources, said the number of U.S. troops could be reduced from about 14,000 to 8,000 or 9,000 -- close to the same number as in late 2016, early 2017.
News of a potential drawdown comes just days after the Army released information on two young 82nd Airborne soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
The Post's report also comes in the midst of American peace negotiations with the Taliban and about a week after President Donald Trump said he planned to speak with the Pakistani government about reducing troop numbers in Afghanistan.
Concerned Veterans for America, which conducted a poll in April that showed 60 percent of veterans and military famlies would support Trump if he ended the war in Afghanistan, said the drawdown "is a step in the right direction, but should not be a substitute for the full withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan."
"A solid majority of veterans and military families want an American withdrawal from Afghanistan and CVA supports the Trump administration’s efforts to end our involvement in this conflict which no longer serves the United States’ interests," CVA Senior Advisor Dan Caldwell said in a statement to Connecting Vets. "The vast majority of American service members have performed valiantly throughout the nearly 18 years of conflict. It dishonors them and their sacrifices to continue muddling along in a fruitless nation-building conflict that does not make America safer or more prosperous.”