Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) said Friday that a drawdown of U.S. troops from Afghanistan could increase the chances of a 9/11-style attack.

“We’re there to prevent another attack on American soil, like 9/11, and I’m more concerned than ever before that ISIS-K poses that type of threat," Banks, who served in Afghanistan and is a member of the House Armed Services Committee, said on CNN.

ISIS-K refers to an arm of the Islamic State in Iraq in Syria that operates in Afghanistan's Khorasan province.

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Multiple reports emerged Thursday that President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE is considering a much smaller military presence in Afghanistan.

“I hope that’s not the case … when I went back last month it was clear that the threat in Afghanistan has evolved," Banks said. "The rise of ISIS-K in Afghanistan poses a much more serious threat than what we’ve seen there in many years, maybe even since 9/11.”

“A pullout of Afghanistan today would be a concession of defeat, not just to the Taliban, but it would be turning over the country to ISIS-K, which poses a much more significant threat to the homeland,” he said.

ISIS-K poses a “much more complex, and serious threat to the homeland and to our allies as well. Now is not the time to pull back troops,” Banks added.

.@RepJimBanks says the reported order to withdraw half of U.S. troops from Afghanistan “very much could” lead to another 9/11-type attack.



“Now is not the time to pull back troops,” he says. https://t.co/fgzzxDNtxa pic.twitter.com/jxCrWnr0CR — New Day (@NewDay) December 21, 2018

Banks's arguments about the threat posed by a drawdown in Afghanistan closely resembled those of Sen. Lindsey Graham Lindsey Olin GrahamSenate GOP aims to confirm Trump court pick by Oct. 29: report The Hill's Campaign Report: GOP set to ask SCOTUS to limit mail-in voting Senate GOP sees early Supreme Court vote as political booster shot MORE (R-S.C.).

Graham said a withdrawal would be a “high risk strategy” that could pave “the way toward a second 9/11.”

“Like in Syria, troop withdrawal should be based on conditions on the ground," he said in a statement. "The conditions in Afghanistan — at the present moment — make American troop withdrawals a high risk strategy. If we continue on our present course we are setting in motion the loss of all our gains and paving the way toward a second 9/11.”