United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin paid an unannounced visit to Afghanistan on Sunday. This was reported by a high-ranking Afghan official and the media. The situation in Afghanistan is devastated, as it is unclear whether the United States will be able to fulfill its commitment in the Qatari agreement to withdraw its troops from the country by 1 May.
An agreement was reached with the Taliban in Afghanistan during the presidency of former US President Donald Trump in Qatar. It expects the United States to withdraw all its troops from Afghanistan by May 1, while the Taliban agreed to peace talks with the Afghan President Ashraf Ghana’s administration and promised to prevent their territory from being used by “terrorists”.
The US Secretary of Defense is visiting AfghanistanRihards Plūme00:00 / 03:39
—
The Taliban insurgents have largely kept their promise not to attack US or other foreign troops since the agreement was reached in February last year. However, little progress has been made, the situation has remained broadly unchanged, and some terrorist attacks, especially in rural areas, have only just materialized.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has admitted that
Washington is worried about the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan and the growing influence of the Taliban if the United States withdraws its forces.
In a statement on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden warned that it would be difficult to withdraw US troops by May 1, and he is considering the best time.
“I am in the process of making that decision, that is, when they will leave. The fact is that this was not a very tightly negotiated deal that the former president drafted, “said Biden.” We are currently consulting with our allies and the government and this decision is currently being made. I don’t think it will take much longer to leave, and it could happen on May 1, but it’s hard. One of the obstacles is that the transition of the presidency did not go smoothly, and that has taken time and consequences for me. “
Biden’s remarks caused tensions, prompting militants to announce that the deadline for the withdrawal of US forces could not be changed. Mohammad Sohail Shahin, a spokesman for the Taliban’s Qatari political bureau, said that if the United States did not withdraw its troops from Afghanistan by May 1, the US-Taliban agreement reached in Doha last year would be effectively annulled.
The U.S. media, citing sources, has previously reported that
Biden considers a number of options for how long US troops could stay in Afghanistan,
and that one of these options is to keep troops there until November. The Afghan government wants Americans to stay in the country for as long as possible because they provide vital air protection.
During the unannounced visit, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met with Afghan President Ashraf Ghana and other high-ranking Afghan officials. He visited the country after spending the previous days in Japan, South Korea and India. After meeting with Ghana, he was stingy in his comments, only stating that the decision to withdraw troops should be made by Biden, so questions should be put to the president.
The defense visit comes at a time when the United States is desperate to give new impetus to the stalled Afghan peace process.
An international conference on the situation in Afghanistan was held in Moscow last week with Russia, the United States, China, Pakistan and other countries, but it ended without concrete proposals. In April, Turkey plans to continue negotiations with a view to concluding a peace agreement.
The United States, Russia and other stakeholders want some kind of transitional government to take power in Afghanistan, but Ghana has insisted that leaders can only be elected at the ballot box. On the other hand, the Taliban, which have been very successful on the battlefield, do not seem to benefit from such crisis response scenarios.
–
Highlight text and press Ctrl+Enterto send the text to be edited!
Highlight text and press Report a bug buttons to send the text to be edited!
–
–
