afghanistan's says thank you donald trump president ashraf ghani hails the u. s. leaders decision to boost american military presence in the country. real going battle against the taliban. the alleged barcelona attack has had some of the city's most famous monuments in their sights. the force of biting suspects will hold it into the dock and confirms that eight big attack was planned. and tightening the noose around tal afar rocky forces close in on one of the islamic state group's lost remaining strongholds in iraq. hoping to retake the city only weeks after they've recaptured lancel. the first afghanistan gives donald trump the seal of approval afghan president ashraf ghani has hailed the u. s. leader. in the wake of his move to you boost american military presence in the country. in the ongoing battle against the taliban. it's a one day she from childhood to previously making pledges to pull out of the conflict. the taliban has also responded promising to make afghanistan a graveyard for us forces. take a listen to trouble him why he had a change of hear. nine

he went to san jose state, and now he is the [laughing] chief advisor to president ghani. so you are now working with the man who was the president of the college you attended. >> yeah, i didn't -- i never thought that would happen, but it's great. he's a great man. and now we work on a number of project together. >> what are some of those projects? >> mainly irrigation. >> irrigation -- california's going through a drought. i know afghanistan has had some terrible droughts. >> well, that's what brought me back here, learning from the experience of what california is going through. they have done a lot of research, universities out here -- uc davis. we have been visiting the research stations of uc -- the kind of seeds or the saplings or the different technology that are used here, how we can adopt it to the situation in afghanistan, how we can transfer some of the technology back then. then we come to the fresno. here we were talking with the research stations. they are working mainly on pistachios. >> pistachios in fresno. >> yes. and likely, in afghanistan, we have wild

ghani, their government and the taliban ultimately reconcile. but i don't think the taliban will come to the table and reconcile in peace if they don't think we are committed to seeing this through, if they think that they don't have a chance. that is what i think was important in the decision the president just made tonight. >> obviously the big news over the last nine or so days has been the horrific violence that we all saw in charlottesville. also president trump's reaction to it. including the comments he made this evening. you released a statement on facebook today saying, quote, there is no moral relatiism when it comes to neo-nazis, and we cannot allow the slightest ambiguity on such a fundamental question. eric kramer is a financial analyst. eric? >> hello, speaker ryan. you've come out and forcefully condemned racism, but you have not come out and -- i'm sorry. are you willing to come out and condemn trump's statement? such as bob corker? >> let me get into this. i was looking forward to this moment right here, that eric had this conve

i think anything that allows the taliban, ashraf ghani government to collapse, is highly problematic.need to look at how we build a government that is transparent and accountable to its citizens that protects human rights, protects the democracy that is supposedly enshrined in the constitution, and starts to build a resilient society they can stand alone in the longtime cost of amy: kathy kelly, do you think u.s. troops should leave? >> yes, i do. i think in many ways, the governments of afghanistan has are ready collapsed. the government of afghanistan is not able to provide for people protection. they are not able to provide jobs. they're not able to provide environmental security. the groundwater in a couple right now is said -- in kabul is said to be at high risk of contamination. the united states is one among many warlords right now. silly the heaviest armed with the most access to funding, but it is not the case the united states has been shoring up some can of governance. it is -- if it were, i think the united states would not be so interested in mineral wealth. interested in

the irony is that mcmaster understands it's very important that we cannot let the elected ghani governmentl in afghanistan. he wants these afghanistan troops to lead. and he wants the u.s. to be advisers. well, doesn't that sound like something like we might remember from the early 1960s in the kennedy administration and the beginning of the johnson administration with vietnam. that can escalate very, very quickly, when you're fighting a longer kind of insurgency, as the afghan have been doing now for, what, 16 years? so that right there is really, really important. read that book to understand that. i think mcmaster is in a position where he, as a scholar, might be thinking of himself as a national security adviser, and that tex must nsion must be rea interesting. >> eli lake, i appreciate you coming in on a saturday morning. follow eli lake on twitte twitter @elilake. makes it easy. i'll be right back. rethink your allergy pills. flonase sensimist allergy relief uses unique mistpro technology and helps block 6 key inflammatory substances with a gentle mist. most allergy pills only block

the government under president ghani has instituted the oversight of procurement.verything that is purchased in any government agency now has to overseen by the special commission that is been set up by the president. the rationale is obviously to decrease corruption. what many officials say is it means even if you are trying to order a pencil, it can take months. that is the other side of the coin. it is a well-intentioned effort. it is going to cause great disgruntlement and slow down in the government doing its work. constable, her story highlights the reactions in afghanistan where she is based. pamela constable, thanks for your time. guest: you are very welcome. host: back to your calls on the president laying out strategy pencils when it comes to activity in afghanistan. candace's next, republican line. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. i just wanted to say, i am from a long line of military and i have several members of my family in -- and a lot of our friends are at in afghanistan. i won't go into detail about what is going on because the

discussed afghanistan's vast deposisits of metals and rarare earth elements with afghan president ashraf ghanireportedly considering sending an envoy to afghanistan to meet with mining officialals. we are joined now by two guests. kathy kelly is co-coordinator of voices for creative nonviolence, a campaign to end u.s. military and economic warfare. she has made many trips to afghanistan, including one earlier this year. jodi vittori is a senior policy advisor for global witness on afghanistan policy, joining us from washington, d.c.. kathy kelly, let's begin to you -- your response to what is happening in afghanistan right now. think they: to united states has been exacerbating a war that seems unlikely to change -- even if they had sent cents 4000 or many more troops to afghanistan -- when they had 100,000 troops, they were not able to substantially change the direction that now has the afghan government in charge of 60% of the districts in afghanistan, and the taliban and other warlords in charge of 40% of the districts, and also commandeering many of the roadways that lead into major cities

in other words, is president ghani of afghanistan going to continue to bring his people together? to be able to influence the fed real administered tribal areas in pack stand where a lot of al qaeda and taliban terrorists hide out? what are going to be the advancement of the afghan security forces and the development of their counterterrorism forces with what we provide in terms of support? what kind of forces are nato going to provide? when you think about all those things that should be part of a strategy, you also have to take a look at what are the risk and what are the priorities? what is this new administration trying to get done? those are the things i'm going to be looking for. if president trump starts just talking about troop numbers and blaming the past administration for a mess like we've heard him do so many times before, that tells me that he's really not taking ownership of this and that's something that we need the president and the current administration to do. >> president trump, i mean, i think he has been over the map on afghanistan, understandably, so many peo

. >> reporter: today, in the birthplace of the taliban, afghan president ashraf ghani praised president trump's decision to deploy more u.s. troops without an end date. >> ( translated ): from now on, there will not be any timetable or conditions. america will stand with the afghan nation till the end. >> reporter: afghan chief executive abdullah abdullah, who came to prominence fighting the taliban, said the new strategy should serve as a warning. >> the message is very clear: that if there are groups that they think that they can win militarily, they should give up their thinking. >> reporter: but afghan officials say that statement also applies to u.s. the u.s has been targeting the taliban for 16 years, and the 4,000 or so troops that will newly deploy is a fraction of the 100,000 troops who didn't break the taliban's back during the war's peak. ( gunfire ) so u.s. officials say most of the new u.s. troops won't be firing their own weapons, but teaching afghans how to fire theirs. that's a mission nato trainers have been doing since the war began, like these near the border with ira

at the moment we are waiting for the afghan president ashraf ghani to address the nation and give hisdent trump's announcement. i've been speaking to the former head of the afghan army, and he told me he welcomed what president trump had to say. the afghan foreign minister has also said he welcomes it. as you say, security has been steadily deteriorating in afghanistan. last year saw nearly 3,500 civilians die as a result of the violence. there had been concern here that if america were to make a complete withdrawal from the country, then that could boost the taliban. instead, president trump seems to be quite clear that he doesn't want to see the taliban take over afghanistan. at the same time, he says he believes eventually some form of political settlement with the taliban will be necessary in order to bring about peace. that is pretty much the position of the afghan government here. overall, things are being very much welcomed in afghanistan. our diplomatic correspondent jonathan marcus is here. what they go in america is what has been a long campaign has got longer. i think you c

i think we can help the ghani government become more effective in governing the country.nk our goal should be nation building. again, what's at stake for the united states is making sure it doesn't become a safe haven for al qaeda and the taliban. but i think we can help the afghan government become more effective. it's going to take a long time. it's a hard job. >> christine, thanks very much for your time. christine wormuth is a former undersecretary for defense and policy at the department of defense under president obama. we're still following the breaking news on north korea's nuclear program. moments ago president trump responded to the news that north korea has constructed a nuclear weapon small enough to fit on a missile. >> north korea best not make any more threats to the united states. they will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. he has been very threatening, beyond a normal statement. and as i said, they will be met with fire, fury, and frankly power the likes of which this world has never seen before. thank you. thank you. >> let's go ri

one, there is a real scare that ashraf ghani's hold government could be blown out by this taliban surgeaeda is there. the x factor, is think about helmand, where we were, and iran is getting involved big time. there is a whole have going and it is not isolated. it is part of geopolitics and the whole euro asian complex, and america and britain and their allies are in danger of britain and their allies are in dangerof being britain and their allies are in danger of being completely absent. we are going to delve inside the sunday times. take us to page three to finish. it is the edinburgh fringe and the winner of one of the comedy awards. they are saying it is a change from what we have seen in previous times. hopefully finally we can retire the old strip that men are funnier than women. this is really exhausting that we have got to constantly go back into this well. of the three biggest awards at the edinburgh comedy festival, two won by women, and it is the fourth timea won by women, and it is the fourth time a woman has won best show award. i was watching on the bbc the other night the

far as the official reaction from kabul this morning, that came from the office of president ashraf ghani said in a statement i'm grateful to president trump and the american people for his affirmation of support for our efforts to achieve self-reliance. our joint struggle to rid the region from the threat of terrorism. from the time we spent with u.s. marine miss helmand province, they are a long way from self-reliance. 40% of the country has fallen to the taliban. they're heavily dependent on u.s. marines, many who fought for the territory they're standing over, that very soil where so many american forces lost their lives now under taliban control again. the taliban have weighed in too, saying they would continue their fight as long as a single american soldier remains on afghan soil. gayle? >> thank you, charlie d'agata, reporting from kabul. >>> congressional republicans are applauding the new strategy for afghanistan. senate armed services committee chairman kane called the president's a big step in the right direction. in a tv town hall meeting speaker of the house paul ryan said l

at the moment we are waiting for the afghan president ashraf ghani to address the nation and give hise afghan foreign minister has also said he welcomes it. as you say, security has been steadily deteriorating in afghanistan. last year saw nearly 3,500 civilians die as a result of the violence. there had been concerns here that if america were to make a complete withdrawal from the country, then that could boost the taliban. instead, president trump seems to be quite clear that he doesn't want to see the taliban take over afghanistan. at the same time, he says he believes eventually some form of political settlement with the taliban will be necessary in order to bring about peace. that is pretty much the position of the afghan government here. overall, things are being very much welcomed in afghanistan. with me now is james glancy, a former royal marines officer, who did three tours in afghanistan, operating across 1a of the country's 3a provinces, and also joining me the bbc‘s security correspondent frank gardner. if you could paint at a picture of the security situation in afghanist

the government under president ghani has instituted the oversight of procurement. everything that is purchased in any government agency now has to overseen andd, vetted, by the special commission that is been set up by the president. the rationale is obviously to decrease corruption. what many officials say is it means even if you are trying to order a pencil, it can take months. that is the other side of the coin. i think that it is a well-intentioned effort. it is going to cause great disgruntlement and slowdowns in the government doing its work. host: pamela constable, her story this morning highlights the reactions in afghanistan where she is based. pamela constable, thanks for your time. guest: you are very welcome. announcer: now the president's speech on afghanistan from last night. this is just under a half hour. ♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states. ♪