Australia Out of Afghanistan in '3 to 4' Years

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Source: AFP

SYDNEY — Australia's defence chief on Tuesday said he hoped troops could hand over to Afghan forces in "three to four years," but warned pulling out too early would cause civil war.

Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said a premature withdrawal of international forces would almost certainly deliver the troubled central Asian nation to the Taliban and result in a surge in global terrorism.

"If we were to all withdraw now we would leave the country in a situation where I think there would be a civil war, and there is a very strong possibility the Taliban would prevail," said Houston, delivering an update to press here on Afghanistan.

"If the Taliban were to prevail we would be likely to go back to the circumstances that we had before 2001, where the Taliban hosted groups like Al-Qaeda."

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