Defiant Biden dismisses criticism of Afghan exit, points to Afghan army and Trump

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WASHINGTON, Aug.31 (Reuters) – President Joe Biden on Tuesday defiantly dismissed criticism over his decision to meet a deadline to withdraw from Afghanistan this week, a move that has left up to 200 Americans in the country as well. as thousands of Americans lined up Afghan citizens.

In a televised address, Biden presented a sweeping defense of his handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying he inherited a volatile situation from his predecessor, Republican Donald Trump, and that the 20-Year War “would have must have ended a long time ago “.

“I wasn’t going to prolong this war forever, and I wasn’t going to extend an outing forever,” he said, his voice rising with emotion as he spoke.[nL1N2Q2055]

Biden’s handling of the pullout drew fierce criticism from Republicans and his own Democrats as well as foreign allies, punctuated his work approval notes and raised questions about his judgment.

The fate of Americans and Afghans who were unable to board the last American flights from Kabul airport this week after the Taliban took control of the capital remains a major concern.

US officials believe 100-200 Americans remain in Afghanistan “with some intention to leave,” Biden said. He said most of those who stayed were dual citizens and long-time residents who had previously decided to stay, and added that the United States was determined to get them out if they wanted to leave.

Many lawmakers had called on Biden to extend the August 31 deadline to allow more Americans and Afghans to escape. He said on Tuesday that this was not an arbitrary deadline and that meeting it was meant to save lives.

“I take responsibility for the decision. Now some say we should have started the mass evacuations earlier and it could not have been done in a more orderly manner. I respectfully disagree,” he said from the White House State Dining Room.

The White House has said it has enormous power over the Taliban, including access to the global market, which could be used to ensure Americans leave the country.

Biden said an agreement 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 power, the Taliban were in their strongest military position since 2001, controlling or contesting almost half of the country,” he said.

Even though the evacuations had started in June or July, Biden said there would still have been a late rush to the airport from those wishing to leave.

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on Afghanistan during a speech in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, United States, August 31, 2021. REUTERS / Carlos Barria

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He criticized the inability of the fallen Afghan government to tackle the rapid advances of the Taliban, which forced the United States and its NATO allies into a hasty and humiliating exit.

Biden met with now-exiled Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in the Oval Office in June and called him an old friend; in a July appeal, he promised Ghani that he “would fight hard, diplomatically, politically, economically” to support his government. Read more

But on Tuesday, Biden said “the people of Afghanistan have seen their own government crumble and their president flee amid corruption and embezzlement, handing the country over to their nemesis, the Taliban, and dramatically increasing the risk to staff. American and our allies “.

The departure of the last American troops this week crowns two decades of military engagement in Afghanistan that Biden was determined to end. Read more

While most Americans agreed with him, the chaotic and deadly nature of this ending will present new challenges in the months to come.

Biden’s presidency, which had focused on tackling the coronavirus pandemic and rebuilding the economy, now faces political inquiries into handling the withdrawal as well as the logistical challenge of finding new homes for thousands of Afghans displaced to US military bases.

Biden also faces an increase in coronavirus infections, disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires, and a series of tough deadlines to get signing spending measures through Congress.

Republicans and some Democrats have expressed frustration and anger at the speed with which Afghanistan fell to the Taliban, the former rulers who were toppled by the United States after the September 11, 2001 attacks. which they call a botched withdrawal. Read more

Republicans are expected to use the crisis to try to derail Biden’s political and legislative agenda and as a talking point in the 2022 midterm election. Republicans hope to gain control of the Senate and House of Representatives from Democrats in Biden, which could hamper the second half of his presidential term.

Fewer than 40% of Americans approve of Biden’s handling of the withdrawal, and three-quarters wanted US forces to stay in the country until all US civilians can exit, according to a Reuters / Ipsos opinion poll released on Monday . Read more

Leading House Republicans, including Foreign Affairs Committee top Republican Michael McCaul, said they wrote Bidens National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Monday asking for details of the repatriation plan Americans and evacuation of others left behind.

Congress has the right to know how these evacuations will be facilitated and conducted, McCaul said in a statement.

Reporting by Jeff Mason and Steve Holland; Editing by Heather Timmons and Sonya Hepinstall

Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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