DIn view of the advancement of the radical Islamic Taliban in Afghanistan, the United States hopes to reduce its embassy staff to a minimum in the coming weeks. In addition, the US State Department and the Department of Defense announced on Thursday that another 3,000 soldiers will be transferred to Kabul Airport to support the orderly evacuation of some staff. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ned Price said that the embassy in Kabul will remain open at its current location. “We intend to continue our diplomatic work,” Price said.
“This is not an evacuation. This is not a complete withdrawal,” the spokesperson said. He did not provide any information about how many people will leave the embassy. According to the New York Times, of the approximately 4,000 embassy staff, approximately 1,400 are also U.S. citizensThis will be deducted in the next few days. People will limit themselves to the “diplomatic core presence” on the scene. Price said that the Taliban have made it very clear that they will not attack diplomatic institutions. But people will not rely on the words of groups like the Taliban. To this end, people are now taking “prudent precautions.” The New York Times quoted military and government officials as saying that Americans expect the Afghan government to collapse in the next 30 days.
The US military plans to withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of August. According to reports, only a few hundred soldiers should stay – mainly to protect the US Embassy. So far, the Kabul airport has been mainly protected by Turkish soldiers as part of NATO’s mission in Afghanistan, but American soldiers have also stayed there.
Britain is also sending more soldiers
The safe operation of the airport and medical services are prerequisites for embassies and international representative offices to stay in the country. Defense Department spokesman John Kirby said that the temporary increase in the US military presence in Kabul is about 3,000 soldiers.
Britain also hopes to send hundreds of armed forces to Afghanistan to help repatriate the British from the country. The British Ministry of Defense stated that it will send an additional 600 troops to Kabul in the next few days. The Minister of Defense Ben Wallace stated that the armed forces should especially assist British citizens, especially former employees of the British military, to “face the increasing violence and rapidly deteriorating security situation.” According to the British Broadcasting Corporation, an estimated 4,000 Britons remain in Afghanistan.
On Thursday, Herat, the third largest city in Afghanistan, fell into the hands of the Taliban. Kandahar, the second largest city, is also highly competitive. US President Joe Biden emphasized earlier this week that Afghans must now “fight for their country.” Their armed forces are superior to the Taliban militarily, and the same is true in terms of military strength. “But they must also want to fight.” At the same time, he emphasized that he did not regret his decision to withdraw.
The international community threatens the Taliban
At the time of the decision, the United States still had approximately 2,500 soldiers in Afghanistan. At the same time, the withdrawal has actually been completed by more than 95%. Soldiers from the Bundeswehr and other NATO countries have left Afghanistan. As the security situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated significantly, Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom have recently called on their citizens to leave Afghanistan as soon as possible.
The US government stated that if the new Afghan government seizes power by force, the international community will not recognize it. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Price said that this “message for the Taliban” will be expressed in a joint statement with several international partners, including Germany. Price emphasized that the Taliban’s violent seizure of power will isolate Afghanistan internationally, and therefore aid funds will also be suspended.
Since the United States and NATO began withdrawing their troops in early May, the Taliban have made huge territorial gains. From 1996 to 2001, with US-led intervention, Islamists controlled most of Afghanistan.
