Biden and Afghan president to meet in the face of Taliban advance
EThe announcement of the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan has provoked an earthquake of international reaction. The US is putting an end to 20 years of military presence in the Asian country, but it leaves many questions unanswered, perhaps the most important of which is: who will fill the power vacuum left by the US? Afghanistan remains a country in conflict, with both the Taliban and the Afghan government fighting for control of territory.
Since US President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban have made significant gains throughout the country. The US president set a deadline of 11 September for the withdrawal of his troops, a date that symbolises the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, which is why the US president at the time, George W. Bush, after accusing the Taliban of supporting and harbouring Osama Bin Laden and other Al Qaeda leaders linked to the attack, decided to deploy US troops in Afghanistan.
Following this US announcement, NATO countries also agreed to begin withdrawing their troops from Afghanistan. The withdrawal of international troops has caused a vacuum within the ranks of the Afghan National Army (ANA), which seems unable to cope with the Taliban advance. Since the beginning of the withdrawal of troops in the last month and a half, almost 60 districts of Afghanistan's 370 districts have fallen to the Taliban. Just this week, armed fighters seized Shir Khan Bandar, the main gateway to the northern border with Tajikistan.
Against this bleak backdrop, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has released a US intelligence report that the Afghan government could fall in as little as six months once the last international troops are withdrawn from the country. According to the WSJ, the intelligence services have so far argued that the Afghan government could hold out for up to two years, but in the wake of rapid developments on the ground a new analysis has shown that the situation in Afghanistan is bleak. The newspaper, which relies on anonymous sources, notes that this new US intelligence analysis was completed last week, amid the rapid gains the Taliban are making in many areas of the country following their offensive in May, coinciding with the start of the withdrawal of international forces.
The White House is aware of the increase in violence in the country since Biden's announcement of the withdrawal, but still insists it is "not going to change" the timetable. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki, during a press conference, emphasised Joe Biden's commitment to withdraw all his men before 11 September, "If we had not begun to withdraw, the violence against our troops would also have increased because that is what the Taliban were clearly conveying", Psaki asserted, according to Efe.
The statements come just two days before the arrival of the President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, in the United States to meet with his counterpart, Joe Biden, where he hopes to obtain support to confront the Taliban offensive. In addition to the Afghan president, the president of the High Council for Reconciliation in Afghanistan, Abdullah Abdullah, will also travel to Washington, among other high-ranking members of the Afghan government. The Afghan government hopes that this trip, which is taking place at a "very important" time for the country, will be "a successful and fruitful visit", according to Efe.
The United States has repeatedly shown its unwavering commitment to withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan, and despite the increasingly problematic situation in the country it seems that Joe Biden's administration is unwilling to backtrack on its decision and is determined to pull out the 2,500 US forces by early September. Turkey, however, has been keen to fill the leadership vacuum in the Asian country.
The Eurasian country has offered to manage and protect Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport from 11 September, when the US and NATO will withdraw all their troops from Afghanistan. Turkey made this proposal at the last NATO meeting in May, an offer that has brought Ankara and Washington closer together, as well as a renewed sense of confidence in Turkey on the part of the other NATO countries. Ankara knows that a well-functioning Hamid Karzai airport is of vital importance to a future peace settlement in Afghanistan. Diplomats and humanitarian aid workers arrive through the Kabul airfield. In addition, safe and sustained airlift facilitates the work of development workers deployed in the country.
NATO's annual summit on 14 June underlined Turkey's importance on the international stage. The summit witnessed the first meeting between US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who, despite their differences, share a common challenge: Afghanistan. The US accepted Turkey's proposal and Biden himself pledged to support Ankara economically and militarily. However, the Taliban have demanded that Ankara withdraw along with other NATO troops, and warned Erdogan not to make a "big mistake".
The visit of Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani to the United States is crucial to clarify a roadmap for the withdrawal of foreign troops, as well as to coordinate the efforts of the Afghan National Army in the face of the Taliban's rapid advances that threaten to overthrow the government in six months, according to the US intelligence services themselves.
