WASHINGTON, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Defense Department confirmed on Friday that a U.S. soldier died in Afghanistan on Thursday.

The soldier was killed when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Kabul, Afghanistan, said the Pentagon in a statement, adding the incident is currently under investigation.

The United States maintains some 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, which largely provide training missions to local Afghan forces while also conducting counterterrorism operations against terror groups.