U.S. defence secretary in Afghanistan as U.S. looks to craft policy

By Idrees Ali

24 April 2017 at 4:49 am

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis addresses a news conference during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, February 16, 2017. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File Photo

By Idrees Ali KABUL (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis arrived in Afghanistan on Monday as President Donald Trump's administration looks to construct its strategy for the war-torn country, where resurgent Taliban militants continue to make gains. Mattis is expected to meet Afghan officials and U.S. troops while in Kabul, but his arrival coincided with an announcement that his Afghan counterpart, Defence Minister Abdullah Habibi, and the Afghan army chief of staff had resigned after more than 140 Afghan soldiers were killed in a Taliban attack last week. (Reporting by Josh Smith; Editing by Alex Richardson)

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