Joe Biden defends handling of US departure from Afghanistan
31 August 2021, 22:04
The president said ‘arrangements’ will be made to help any American still wishing to leave the country.
President Joe Biden is defending his handling of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, including the frantic final evacuation from Kabul airport.
In remarks at the White House on Tuesday, Mr Biden said the US government had reached out 19 times since March, prior to his public announcement that he was going to end the US war, to encourage all American citizens in Afghanistan to leave.
He acknowledged that 100 to 200 were unable to get out when the airlift ended on Monday.
Mr Biden asserted that his administration was ready when the US-backed government in Kabul collapsed in mid-August and the Taliban took over.
But the airlift that began on August 14 has been heavily criticised by many as initially unorganised and chaotic.
Mr Biden said that 5,500 Americans eventually got out, and that “arrangements” will be made to get the remaining Americans out if they so choose.
Mr Biden said he will sharpen the focus of US foreign policy by concentrating on threats such as cyberattack and the proliferation of nuclear weapon technologies.
He vows to continue counterterrorism operations, including against any threats emanating from Afghanistan.
He says this can be done with forces based outside of Afghanistan.
The president also mentioned the so-called Islamic State extremist group’s Afghanistan affiliate Isis-K, which conducted a suicide bombing at the Kabul airport on August 26 that killed 13 US service members and dozens of Afghan civilians.
Mr Biden said: “We are not done with you yet.”
