On Tuesday, US President Joe Biden confirmed August 31 as the date for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. This time frame raises a number of questions.
- Why this date?
The Taliban, which was allowed to seize power on August 15, was set by the US president on August 31 before the Blitzkrieg. In February 2020, an agreement between the extremists and the Donald Trump administration called for the complete withdrawal of foreign powers. May 1. When Biden announced in mid-April that he would continue the withdrawal that his predecessor had begun, all foreign powers would leave the country “before the twentieth anniversary of the vicious September 11 attacks.
The goal is to withdraw 2,500 U.S. troops, thousands of NATO troops and 16,000 civilian contractors on Afghan soil before the twentieth anniversary of the attack that prompted the US to overthrow the Taliban regime. -Quaida.
But the choice of this symbolic date later drew sharp criticism, prompting Biden to extend the deadline to early July 31.
- Why did it become such a dilemma?
The four-month delay gives the military, which has been waiting for Biden’s decision since January, time for a systematic withdrawal and time for U.S. citizens and Afghans waiting for immigrant visas to leave the country.
In the event of a hasty withdrawal by the military, the State Department and the White House did not immediately consider speeding up the visa process, relying on the government’s ability to resist the Taliban advance for months.
The rebels’ lightning strike surprised Washington by withdrawing Afghan troops. On August 14, Biden announced that reinforcements would be sent to Kabul airport to secure the evacuation of civilians.
What are the logistical issues that arise from this?
The United States has announced it has sent 6,000 troops to secure the airport and build a large air bridge, co-ordinating with the Taliban and forcing crowds of foreigners and Afghans to flee the airport. The operation began slowly, with the U.S. military prioritizing securing the area.
Scenes of panic prompted the U.S. military to close the airport. Identity checks took hours, and people crowded around the airport, finding thousands of people stranded for days between the Taliban and U.S. military checkpoints.
However, the organization gradually began to take a turn for the worse, thanks to continued aviation operations, U.S. military aircraft, and then troops from other countries.
On Tuesday, 21,600 people were evacuated in 24 hours. Since the airlift began on August 14, more than 70,700 people have been evacuated, including 4,000 Americans, citizens of NATO countries and thousands of Afghans who fear for their lives under the new Taliban regime.
- What are the risks?
On Tuesday, Biden refused to postpone the August 31 withdrawal deadline for the “increasing risk” of a terrorist attack on the U.S. military, and therefore rejected a request from Europeans for more time to evacuate them.
