US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin pointed out the senselessness of extending the stay of American troops in Afghanistan and keeping the base in Bagram in the hands of the country.
"As for the completion of the mission, my judgment remains that extending [the duration of the stay of the American military contingent in Afghanistan] beyond the end of August would put our people and our mission at significant risk," he said during a speech to the Armed Forces Committee of the House of Representatives of the US Congress on Wednesday, September 29.
According to the minister, if the United States had retained the Bagram base, the country would have had to endanger 5,000 American troops in order to use it and defend it. At the same time, this decision would not contribute to the implementation of the combat task that was assigned to the US military — the protection of the US embassy in Kabul, located about 48 km from Bagram.
"And because of this distance to Kabul, the Bagram base also had practically no value during the evacuation (of a number of categories of citizens from Afghanistan - Ed.). Continuing to stay in Bagram, even for counterterrorist purposes, meant continuing the war in Afghanistan. And the president [of the United States Joe Biden] made it clear that he would not do this," TASS quoted Austin as saying.
A day earlier, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (KNSH) US Armed Forces General Mark Milli said that the Taliban movement (banned in Russia) It has not severed ties with the Al-Qaeda terrorist network (banned in the Russian Federation) and still remains a terrorist organization.
According to him, it remains to be seen whether the Taliban will be able to consolidate power or Afghanistan will fall apart as a result of the subsequent civil war. Milli also did not rule out that terrorists will again organize attacks from the territory of the country.
On September 27, former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani called on the international community to recognize the new government of the country. He stressed that international structures will help Afghanistan by recognizing the Taliban Cabinet.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on September 24 that the recognition of the legitimacy of the new Afghan authorities formed by the Taliban depends on their fulfillment of obligations in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions.
Earlier, on September 17, Russian President Vladimir Putin noted that the withdrawal of US troops and their allies from Afghanistan could be compared to flight. According to him, after the aggravation of the situation in Afghanistan, a common and coordinated line of risks is needed.
The situation in Afghanistan escalated in May 2021 after the start of the withdrawal of American troops who had been in the country since 2001. The Taliban launched an offensive on major cities of the country and entered Kabul on August 15, declaring the end of the war. Ashraf Ghani left the country on the same day.
