WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden mounted a fierce defence of his exit from Afghanistan as the “best decision for America,” the day after the US military withdrawal celebrated by the Taliban as a major victory.
“This is the right decision. A wise decision. And the best decision for America,” Biden said in an address to the nation in Washington, after he stuck to an August 31 deadline to end two decades of war.
He said it was not an arbitrary deadline, and that sticking to it was aimed at saving lives. “I take responsibility for the decision. Now some say we should have started mass evacuations sooner and couldn’t this … have been done in a more orderly manner. I respectfully disagree,” he said from the White House State Dining Room.
The White House said it had enormous leverage over the Taliban, including access to the global marketplace, that could be used to ensure Americans get out of the country.
Biden said a deal brokered by the Trump administration last year authorized the release of 5,000 prisoners, including some of the Taliban’s top war commanders. “By the time I came to office, the Taliban was in its strongest military position since 2001, controlling or contesting nearly half of the country,” he said.
Even if evacuations had begun in June or July, Biden said there still would have been a late rush to the airport by people wanting to leave. For America, Biden argued, the only choice in Afghanistan was “leaving or escalating.”
The president said the frenzied airlift — which saw the United States and its allies fly more than 120,000 people fleeing the new Taliban regime out of Afghanistan — was an “extraordinary success.” “No nation has ever done anything like it in all of history; only the United States had the capacity and the will and ability to do it,” he said.
All eyes will now turn to how the Taliban handle their first few days with sole authority over the country, with a sharp focus on whether they will allow free departure for those wanting to leave — including some foreigners.
The US has said that less than 200 of its citizens remained in the country, and Britain said the number of UK nationals inside was in the “low hundreds.” Thousands of Afghans who worked with the US-backed government over the years and fear retribution also want to get out.
Talks are ongoing as to who will now run Kabul airport, which German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned was of “existential importance” as a lifeline for aid.
He spoke after the United Nations warned of a looming “humanitarian catastrophe” in Afghanistan, underscoring the daunting challenges that the victorious Taliban face as they transform from insurgent group to governing power.
UN chief Antonio Guterres gave a stark assessment of the challenges they face as they build their new regime. He expressed his “grave concern at the deepening humanitarian and economic crisis in the country,” adding that basic services threatened to collapse “completely.”
He pleaded for financial support from the international community for the war-ravaged country, which is dependent on foreign aid. “I urge all member states to dig deep for the people of Afghanistan in their darkest hour of need,” Guterres said in a statement.
Biden said that the United States would continue the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan and other countries, and warned IS: “We are not done with you yet.”
