Washington - The
completion of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan was the most prominent external event during President Joe Biden's first year in office.
Commentators described the "fall of Kabul" as a historical moment similar to the "Saigon moment" and the humiliating withdrawal from Vietnam for the administration of US President Joe Biden. What could be the outcome of Washington's relationship with its allies in Western Europe and East Asia.
Biden believed in recent years, after many visits to Afghanistan as a senator and vice president for 8 years, that his country had no interest in a military presence in Afghanistan after achieving its terrorism-related goals, and that nothing could be done to build a stable democracy in Afghanistan.
Biden confirmed that he refuses to continue a war that does not serve the interests of the American people (European).
Biden's responsibility
After the last US military plane left Kabul Airport on August 30, 2021, Biden said in a speech to the American people, "I have made a decision to end the war in Afghanistan," noting that he does not believe that the security and safety of the United States can be enhanced by deploying thousands of soldiers. in Afghanistan.
Biden stressed that he refuses to continue a war that "does not serve the interests of the American people," and that the United States has not been at peace since the war in Afghanistan began 20 years ago, calling on his country to learn lessons from that experience.
The US President explained that the war in Afghanistan cost his country about $300 million a day over two decades, or nearly $2.2 trillion in total.
Biden reiterates that he alone bears responsibility for the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan after staying there for 20 years.
it is time
Biden inherited a withdrawal agreement reached by former President Donald Trump with the Taliban, and Biden announced his commitment to withdraw his remaining 2,500 troops and return them to American soil by August 31, 2021, after the Taliban agreed to extend the withdrawal date.
Biden reiterated that he refuses to bequeath the war in Afghanistan to a fifth president, and expressed his belief that the war should not have passed to him nearly 20 years after it began.
Over the past 20 years, every American president, starting with Republican George Bush, Democrat Barack Obama, Republican Donald Trump, and ending with Democrat Biden, has contributed to the Afghanistan war that killed tens of thousands of Afghans and Americans, in addition to spending more than two trillion dollars on failed attempts. To improve the political, economic and security conditions, the American adventure ended with the return of the Taliban movement to once again control Afghanistan.
American soldiers arrive home after the withdrawal from Afghanistan (French)
Difficulties implementing withdrawal
No one in Washington predicted the shockingly rapid collapse of the Afghan state and army, although in the early days of his rule Biden received estimates from his national security team that withdrawing all forces would lead to the eventual collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban's seizure of power.
The Pentagon worked to quickly withdraw the forces, and on July 2, Bagram Airport (a symbol of US military strength) was handed over to the government forces, at the same time the Taliban continued to gain more states and regions at the expense of the government army.
On August 15, 2021, the Taliban returned to power in Kabul after the president fled the country, a collapse that Biden said frankly had happened much more quickly than he had expected.
The movement has rejected any extension of the deadline for the withdrawal of US forces, which and its allies have begun a quick mission to evacuate its citizens and Afghan collaborators who helped during the war effort and fear reprisals from the Taliban.
future of alliances
Many Republican and Democratic leaders feared the impact of the negative image of withdrawal from Afghanistan on Washington's military alliances in East Asia (Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) and Western Europe (NATO countries).
Many leaders of the two parties considered that the chaotic and humiliating withdrawal of America from Afghanistan will reverberate for years. However, developments in the European and Asian arenas, whether related to the Ukrainian crisis or Washington’s efforts to contain the Chinese rise, confirm that Washington’s military alliances are solid, and America’s allies cannot be dispensed with. traditionalists about it because of what happened in Afghanistan.
On the other hand, the withdrawal from Afghanistan represented good news for Washington’s Asian allies, who want Washington to pay attention and focus on the broad threats posed by China, and this is similar to what was expressed by some European leaders who were prompted by Trump’s policies to question the American commitment to European security, which is evident Currently clearly regarding the Ukraine crisis.
A demonstration in Washington protesting the Taliban's takeover of power in Afghanistan (European)
deferred accounting
The images of the withdrawal from inside the Kabul airport came as a massive shock, and indeed had a profound impact on the Biden presidency.
Republican lawmakers and commentators called for Biden to be removed or resigned due to the manner of withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the subsequent seizure by Taliban forces of American equipment and weapons there. Some also attacked Biden's indifference to the plight of Afghans, especially women, under Taliban rule.
A year into Biden's rule, and more than four months after the withdrawal from Afghanistan, the White House has not answered a key question: Why did Biden and his aides fail so spectacularly to appreciate the fragility of the Afghan government and military?
It is fortunate for Biden in the short term that both houses of Congress are currently controlled by Democrats, while Republicans pledge to impeach him if they have a majority in one of the two houses of Congress, as is widely expected after the upcoming November 2022 elections.