Kabul, Afghanistan – Congresswoman Terri A. Sewell (D-AL) participated in a Congressional Delegation led by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi to Afghanistan where they met with Commander of NATO Resolute Support Mission, General John Nicholson, Jr. and U.S. Forces. Today, Representative Sewell released the following statement at the conclusion of the delegation’s visit with U.S. troops in Afghanistan:

“Over the past few days, I have been tremendously honored to travel with Congressional leaders as we visited with our brave men and women, who have put themselves in harms-way to defend our nation.  Our national security delegation to Afghanistan follows President Obama’s recent announcement of a modified schedule for U.S. troop withdrawal and an earlier announcement of new authorities for U.S. forces operating in Afghanistan.   

?"As a member of the House Intelligence Committee, I wanted to hear from our troops and NATO leadership regarding their efforts to help stand up Afghan security forces and to personally thank them for their tremendous service.  The delegation also received a comprehensive series of national security and intelligence briefings that focused on ways our military is leveraging new authorities granted by President Obama and resources in the fight against terrorist elements to ensure international security and stability.

“We also met with our troops with the Train, Advise and Assist Command--East at Gamberi Training Base to thank them for their service and to learn about the regional training efforts of Afghan security forces near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.                

“Finally, I was thrilled to spend time with servicemembers from Alabama in Afghanistan and to let them know that we are so proud of them and look forward to them coming home to be celebrated for the heroes they are.”

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