Tensions already palpable.
France considers "necessary" an "additional time", beyond August 31, to carry out the evacuations of people at risk from Afghanistan, after the takeover of the Taliban, said Monday the French Minister of Foreign Affairs .
“We are concerned about the deadline set by the United States of August 31st.
More time is needed to complete the ongoing operations, ”Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters accompanying him to Al-Dhafra Air Base 104, 30 kilometers from Abu Dhabi, where the French Air Force has set up an airlift to Kabul.
Biden plans to delay full withdrawal date
President Joe Biden this weekend raised the possibility of extending beyond August 31 the American presence at Kabul airport, where the last Western soldiers and diplomats who coordinate the evacuations are holed up.
He had previously set this date for the completion of the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan and therefore the end of a 20-year war, the longest known to the United States.
But the Taliban raised their tone on Monday against a possible extension of this deadline.
"The answer is no", otherwise "there will be consequences", responded a spokesman for the Taliban, Suhail Shaheen, with the British television channel Sky News.
For the Americans and their allies.
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Afghanistan
World
Diplomacy
Jean-Yves Le Drian