Earlier this week, President Trump authorized Defense Secretary James Mattis to make his own determinations about troop levels in Afghanistan, where the local government backed by the U.S. led coalition has been suffering a bloody stalemate against the Taliban for months.

Secretary Mattis testified before Congress on Tuesday that the United States and its allies were “not winning” the fight in Afghanistan.  At the time, Republican Senator John McCain questioned Mattis’ department about the strategy being employed against Islamic Extremism in the region.

“We’re now six months into this administration,” McCain said. “We still haven’t got a strategy for Afghanistan. It makes it hard for us to support you when we don’t have a strategy.”

During his testimony, Mattis attempted to assuage Senator McCain’s concerns by indicating that measures were being taken to ensure the war effort in Afghanistan isn’t hindered by the delay in an announcement of a formal strategy moving forward, adding that it would take an increase in resources and personnel to change the tides of the fight.