President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced a plan to withdraw American forces from Afghanistan by September 11th. The U.S. has approximately 2,500 troops in Afghanistan. NATO announced it would follow the U.S. example and also withdraw its member troops.
The plan has come under criticism by U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe and Congressman Tom Cole.
Inhofe issued a joint statement with House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Congressman Mike Rogers after Biden announced his plan. Inhofe is the Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“We once again urge President Biden to reconsider his political, calendar-based approach to withdrawing from Afghanistan. The United States entered Afghanistan as a result of 9/11, and it is irresponsible to leave when conditions on the ground would lead to a civil war in Afghanistan and allow the country to become a safe haven for terrorists once again,” Inhofe and Rogers said. “The Annual Threat Assessment, prepared by the Biden administration and which was released publicly just last week, is unequivocal: ‘The Taliban is likely to make gains on the battlefield, and the Afghan Government will struggle to hold the Taliban at bay if the coalition withdraws support.’
“Republicans and Democrats came together to work with the previous Administration on a different approach to Syria when a full drawdown was considered in 2019, for exactly the same reason: the best way to protect American families at home is to defeat the terrorists overseas. We hope we can come together once again to do the same on the approach to Afghanistan. Finally, we are eager to hear from the commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Miller, about current conditions in Afghanistan and expect him to testify before our committees later this month.”
Cole says the news of the withdraw of troops will play much differently in Afghanistan.
“Keeping the Taliban out of power and preventing Afghanistan from being used as a platform for attacks against America remain key U.S. objectives,” said Cole. “We have been able to do so in recent years with a relatively modest commitment of U.S. forces bolstered by thousands of troops contributed by our NATO allies. Removing those forces and risking a Taliban take-over of the country is a huge mistake.
“This policy decision by the Biden Administration is bad enough, but linking it to a date our terrorist enemies still celebrate – 9/11 – hands them a propaganda victory that will reverberate throughout the Middle East. The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan under current conditions will be seen as a sign of American weakness rather than strength. It will ultimately lead to more attacks on Americans around the world.
“American involvement in Afghanistan began with a congressional authorization in 2001. If President Biden wants to end it, he should request congressional approval. Doing so would require those Members of Congress supporting this ill-advised decision to take responsibility for the disaster that is likely to follow.”
President Trump’s Administration signed an agreement in February 2020 with the Taliban promising to withdraw troops earlier than Biden’s deadline. In that agreement, the Taliban agreed to cut ties with al-Qaeda and would begin negotiations with the Afghanistan government.
