Defense Secretary Ash Carter arrived in Afghanistan on Friday, where officials said he planned to meet with U.S. troops and military commanders and Afghan officials.
Carter’s visit comes as Afghanistan faces serious security setbacks, with the Taliban staging more attacks and inflicting more casualties on Afghan forces in the last year compared to previously.
In a report to the U.S. Congress released this week, the Pentagon painted a grim picture of the security situation in Afghanistan, finding that from the beginning of the year to mid-November, there were 27 percent more high-profile attacks in the capital city of Kabul compared with the same period last year.
Afghan national defense and security forces also had 27 percent more casualties from the start of 2015 up to mid-November compared with the same period last year, the Pentagon report found.