WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden will withdraw all United States forces from Afghanistan by September 11, missing a crucial May 1 deadline that was brokered by the Trump administration, a senior administration official said on Tuesday.
Biden’s removal of US troops will coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks that triggered the nation’s entry into what would become its longest war.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the withdrawal of US and foreign troops from the war-torn country could happen well before September. However, the withdrawal would be based on certain security and human rights assurances, the sources said.
“We will reposition our counterterrorism capabilities retaining important assets in the region to offset the potential reemergence of a terrorist threat to the native soil from Afghanistan and to hold the Taliban to its commitment to making sure Al Qaeda does not once again threaten the US,” the official said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin are expected to brief the decision to NATO allies in Brussels on Wednesday. Biden may also publicly announce his decision, the sources added.
Biden’s decision, should it be confirmed, would miss a May 1 deadline for withdrawal agreed with Taliban insurgents by his predecessor Donald Trump’s administration.
Last month in a statement, the Taliban threatened to start again hostilities against foreign troops in Afghanistan if they did not meet the May 1 closing date of the agreement.
However, it would still set a near-term date with withdrawal, potentially allaying Taliban concerns that Biden would drag out the process.
The May 1 target had already initiated to emerge less and less probable in recent weeks, given the lack of groundwork’s on the ground to make sure it could be done in a safe and dependable way. US officials have also liable the Taliban for failing to live up to commitments to decrease violence and some have warned about persistent Taliban links to al Qaeda.
Thousands of American and allied troops have died in fighting in Afghanistan. The wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria have cost U.S. taxpayers more than $1.57 trillion collectively since Sept. 11, 2001, according to a Defense Department report.
