Despite the advance of the Taliban, Joe Biden does not intend to change his mind. The American president indeed explained Tuesday that he “does not regret” his decision to complete the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan at the end of the month. The defense of the territory is therefore now in the hands of the Afghans, who must find, according to the tenant of the White House, “the will to fight”.
The last American troops must have left Afghanistan on August 31, ending twenty years of war for the United States. Since the Democratic president announced the deadline about a month ago, the Taliban has been steadily gaining ground. They seized two new Afghan provincial capitals on Tuesday, Farah, in the west, and Pul-e Khumri, in the north, from which civilians were fleeing in droves.
Further logistical and financial support
The Afghans “must fight for themselves, for their nation”. “We have spent more than 1,000 billion dollars in twenty years, trained and equipped (…) more than 300,000 Afghan soldiers”, recalled Joe Biden. However, he assured that the Americans would “keep their promise” to continue to support the Afghan army logistically and financially.
In the same vein, State Department spokesman Ned Price told him on Tuesday that the Afghan armed forces were “far superior in number” to the Taliban, and that they had “the potential to inflict losses. most important ”. “This idea that the advance of the Taliban cannot be stopped (…), it is not the reality on the ground”, he estimated. Yet the fast-paced Taliban now controls eight of Afghanistan’s 34 provincial capitals, including six of nine in the north, with fighting ongoing in the other three.