Antony Blinken says the Taliban will give Americans and Afghans who feel in danger the opportunity to leave Afghanistan after 31 August.
“Both public and private, the Taliban have assured that they will allow safe departure for Americans, people from third countries and Afghans who are exposed to risk, Blinken said at a press conference on Wednesday.
The United States and 113 other countries have issued a statement in which they make it clear that the Taliban must keep these promises, according to the foreign minister. Not just for the duration of the evacuation, but for all eternity.
– The work to help everyone who wants out of Afghanistan will continue as long as needed, Blinken says.
Tuesday was a crisis meeting among the G7 countries to extend the deadline in Afghanistan.
Now it seems that both the United States and Germany have received some form of guarantee from the Taliban.
However, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby says he does not assume the US military will have a role in the evacuation after August 31.
EXTENDED DEADLINE: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the Taliban has extended the deadline for leaving the country.
Photo: Pool / Reuters
–
– The time window may be short
In a written statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide explains that it is a complicated situation.
– We are still working intensely to evacuate those we can, both Norwegian citizens or people with a residence permit in Norway and Afghans in need of protection. We will continue to do so for as long as we can, but the time window can be very short, says Søreide.
She adds that they have fought for an extended deadline.
– I have been clear that Norway believes that the deadline should be extended, both in direct dialogue with the United States and during the Foreign Ministers’ meeting in NATO on Friday. At the same time, we know that there have been limitations in what has been possible, not least in the communication between the United States and the Taliban.
She repeats what she has said the previous days:
– We can not give any guarantee that we will be able to help all Norwegian citizens who want to go home in this round.
Crisis meeting
According to Blinken, there were about 1,500 American citizens left in Afghanistan on Wednesday.
US authorities try to contact them several times a day to check if they still want to travel.
PRESS CONFERENCE: The US Department of Defense is holding a press conference on the evacuation from Kabul.
–
Depending on the Americans
The evacuation has so far been entirely dependent on American soldiers being responsible for the operation and security of the airport in Kabul.
Both Norway and other European countries have tried to pressure the United States to extend the evacuation deadline. However, President Joe Biden has said he wants to bring home the last troops on August 31, in line with an agreement with the Taliban.
Germany received guarantees
German authorities announced the same on Wednesday, namely that Afghans with valid travel documents may leave the country after the deadline.
Germany’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Markus Potzel, wrote on Twitter that he had spoken to Taliban negotiator Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai.
Stanikzai has reportedly assured that Afghans with the necessary documents can leave the country with commercial flights after 31 August. Earlier, the Taliban said the evacuation of Afghans must end on that date, in line with an agreement with the United States.
–
