Pentagon accuses Afghan army in closed-door briefing: “You can’t buy willpower”

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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin lamented “you can’t buy willpower” during a call with members of Congress on Sunday as the Taliban nears a full takeover of Afghanistan, according to a report. source.

Austin, along with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, briefed members of the House and Senate in separate unclassified virtual conferences on Sunday. morning on the rapidly deteriorating situation in Afghanistan.

Officials said the United States was prepared for all scenarios, but Austin told the House he was “beyond disappointment” that Afghan forces offered little resistance in areas that were seizures by the Taliban in recent days, a member who was on the call told Fox News. .

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After reflecting on years of investing in training and equipping the Afghan army, Austin said, “You can’t buy will and you can’t buy leadership,” the member said.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, left, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley walk to greet US Army General Scott Miller, the former US senior commander in Afghanistan, upon his return on Wednesday July 14, 2021, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo / Alex Brandon, pool) (AP Photo / Alex Brandon, pool)

Lawmakers fear that modern equipment and weapons supplied by the United States to Afghan forces are now in the hands of the Taliban, the MP said. Minority parliamentary leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., Was reportedly angry during the call and questioned whether the US border was secure, especially in relation to the 20th anniversary of 9/11.

Republican Representative Jim Banks, who served in Afghanistan, tweeted while on the phone that President Biden is ‘asleep at the wheel’, spending the weekend at Camp David as the Taliban completes the takeover .

“On the information conference call for members of Congress with Biden officials,” Banks wrote. “It is clear that the Biden administration was caught off guard, did not anticipate this catastrophe and the president is in hiding and sleeping behind the wheel.”

Representative Anthony Gonzalez, R-Ohio, called the situation “embarrassment” for the country.

“The many Ohioans who have passed away and thousands more who served in Afghanistan deserve much better than to see us driven out of the country by the Taliban as we recklessly withdraw,” he tweeted. “It is a shame for our country and President Biden owes much more to the families who have sacrificed so much for this mission.”

The Taliban entered the Afghan capital on Sunday, forcing President Ashraf Ghani to flee and the US embassy to be evacuated. In a statement released on Saturday, President Biden appeared to blame former President Donald Trump for setting a May 1 troop withdrawal date and leaving the Taliban “in the strongest military position since 2001”. Biden said the deadline had forced him to choose between sending more troops or withdrawing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken echoed the sentiment on CNN on Sunday morning, saying that if thousands of American troops had remained in Afghanistan past the deadline, then “attacks would have resumed against our forces” and “we would be de again at war with the Taliban. “

Democrats who were present at the briefing on Sunday morning called for a pause in the political analysis of the situation and stressed that getting the Americans and Afghan allies out of the area was a top priority.

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“There will be many analyzes of our experience in Afghanistan, but at this time I am gravely concerned for the security of our Afghan partners who have served side by side with our troops, diplomats, development professionals and partner forces. to transport our mission, ”said House Majority Leader Representative Steny Hoyer, D-Md., in a statement,

“There will be plenty of time until the quarterback Monday morning, but for now we need the Kabul airport to be open to all traffic, including civilian charters,” wrote Representative Elissa Slotkin. , D-Mich., Wrote. “The US military must ensure the security of this critical location. Without this protection, the Afghans who defended our values ​​but did not work directly for us will die. US security at the airport is critical and we need help. ‘a declarative public statement to that effect, given the chaos. “

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