CINCINNATI, Ohio - Ohio Governor Mike DeWine issued a statement Thursday on the current situation in Afghanistan.

DeWine's statement expressed gratitude and sympathy to men and women in service and their families.

"I have heard the very sad news coming out of Afghanistan today and I want to express on behalf of all Ohioans our deepest sympathy to the service man and women and the families of the injured and those who have lost their lives. This is a terrible tragedy," DeWine said.

DeWine says he was in the U.S. Senate when the Afghan war began and that he attended a number of funerals for service men and women killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"Over the last few days as we have watched the very sad and disturbing news out of Afghanistan, I have been thinking about the mothers and fathers and spouses who lost their lives and how those families must feel. I have also thought about and talked to several of those who served and those who were wounded. To those families and those veterans, thank you. We owe you a lot," DeWine said.

"At a time when we first went into Afghanistan, it was used as the place in the world where terrorists could gather and find safe harbor. We made the decision to go there right after 9/11. The fact that we are safe in the U.S. is direct result of what they did. I want those families to understand that. We thank them and we thank the men and women who came home. What you did made a difference," DeWine said.

President Joe Biden is planning on making a national statement on the situation in Afghanistan Thursday evening.