US President Joe Biden is to announce that all US troops will be withdrawn from Afghanistan, just shy of 20 years since the US and their NATO allies invaded the country.
It will bring to an end the longest war the United States has ever fought. The Taliban had already negotiated a settlement with the US Administration prior to Donald Trump leaving office. The Taliban have also said that they will attack US troops if they do not leave by May 1st of this year.
The US originally invaded Afghanistan in 2001 following the 9/11 attacks on America. The ruling Taliban regime of Afghanistan was said to be hiding Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda, who claimed responsibility for the 9/11 attacks. Bin Laden was tracked down many years later in Pakistan.
Since the invasion, the country of Afghanistan has endured ongoing violence and the Taliban remained an undefeated force. They still control vast swathes of the country.
I applaud President Biden for making the brave and right decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan and bring an end to the longest war in our country’s history. pic.twitter.com/kDHp566tVI
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) April 13, 2021
2,000 US soldiers have died in the war, and hundreds of thousands of Afghans. The war has also cost the US around $1 trillion over the last 20 years.
A source close to Biden told the Washington Post why the president had come to this decision, they said:
"If we break the May 1st deadline negotiated by the previous administration with no clear plan to exit, we will be back at war with the Taliban, and that was not something President Biden believed was in the national interest. This is not conditions-based. The president has judged that a conditions-based approach . . . is a recipe for staying in Afghanistan forever. He has reached the conclusion that the United States will complete its drawdown and will remove its forces from Afghanistan before September 11th."
Some have opposed the withdrawal of US troops, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who said:
"Precipitously withdrawing US forces from Afghanistan is a grave mistake. It is a retreat in the face of an enemy that has not yet been vanquished and abdication of American leadership. Leaders in both parties, including me, offered criticism when the prior administration floated the concept of a reckless withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan."
Republican Ted Cruz added:
"Bringing our troops home should not be taken as a sign that America will be any less vigilant in protecting American lives and those of our allies, but we can do so without a permanent military presence in a hostile terrain."
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who favoured the withdrawal, said:
"While our withdrawal comes years late, President Biden recognizes the reality that our continued presence there does not make the US or the world safer. For nearly 20 years, we have adopted a costly war-based approach to national security and counterterrorism policy with no clear endgame."
[h/t: Upworthy]
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