Pentagon says Trump’s Afghan troop boost to cost $1 billion
By RICHARD LARDNER, , Associated Press,
Published: October 3, 2017, 12:05pm
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Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, right, speak with Chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., center, as they arrive to testify on Afghanistan before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Photo Gallery
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military’s top leaders told lawmakers Tuesday that the thousands of additional U.S. troops President Donald Trump has ordered to Afghanistan will cost just over $1 billion a year, bringing the total bill for fighting America’s longest war to $12.5 billion annually.
During wide-ranging hearings on Capitol Hill, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also said that the United States should remain in the nuclear deal negotiated during the Obama administration that constrains Iran’s ability to build a nuclear arsenal.
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