United States (US) President Joe Biden addressed the public for the first time on Monday after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan.
In his address, Biden talked about America’s complete withdrawal from the war-torn country and firmly defended his position and the overall strategy regarding Afghanistan.
Biden said he “stands squarely behind his decision” despite the harsh criticism the US faces from the international community at the moment. “How many more American lives is it worth?” he asked as chaos engulfed Kabul.
The US President stated: “Our mission in Afghanistan was never supposed to have been nation-building. It was never supposed to be creating a unified, centralised democracy. Our only vital national interest in Afghanistan remains today what it has always been: preventing a terrorist attack on the American homeland.”
On Sunday, the Taliban captured the Afghan capital, and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, resulting in the collapse of his government. Taliban’s takeover now presents Afghanistan with a monumental humanitarian crisis and a terrorism threat.
The US invaded Afghanistan in 2001 shortly after the 9/11 attacks carried out by Al-Qaeda terrorists. Washington accused the Taliban of harbouring Al-Qaeda militants, and US forces quickly toppled the Taliban government. The US military then set out on a long process of dismantling the Taliban militarily and rebuilding democratic institutions in the country.
In the aftermath of its withdrawal, however, critics have expressed concern over how the nation might become a “haven” for terrorists again, threatening the US and other countries. The New Yorker, for example, termed the crisis as America’s failure and described its speedy evacuation as a dismissal of its responsibilities to the people of Afghanistan.
On Monday, Kabul International Airport witnessed chaotic scenes as desperate Afghans tried to flee the country on the US evacuation aircraft. Reports also mentioned that at least eight Afghans were killed at the airport. In two other incidents, armed men were shot and killed after approaching US Marines.
Online media platform UK Fact Check Politics released several videos and recordings that depict the sheer torment Afghan civilians face, including the incident where civilians helplessly ran alongside the US helicopters fleeing the region.
Women, too, fear their future under the Taliban, which has historically oppressed and discriminated against women. In the past, the women in Afghanistan have categorically been denied education and space in the public sphere. It has been reported that the Taliban fighters are going door-to-door with the list of unmarried women aged 12-45, as they are considered ‘spoils of war’ to be divided among the victors.
Against this backdrop, Biden has been criticised for shifting the responsibility to the Afghan government and its people, saying, “They have got to fight for themselves.” In his earlier statements, Biden suggested that it was time for Afghanistan to become self-reliant and presented their dependence on the United States as a critique of the current crisis.
These consecutive statements have resulted in worldwide outrage against the US and President Biden for compromising the safety of Afghan civilians and leaving them exposed to the Taliban.
Biden Defends Afghanistan Withdrawal As US Faces Worldwide Criticism
Despite the Taliban seizing control of Kabul and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fleeing the country, US President Joe Biden firmly defended his position on Afghanistan and the withdrawal of troops.
August 18, 2021
'I stand squarely behind my decision' Biden defends withdrawal from Afghanistan, Aug. 17, 2021. SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES