Joe Biden to withdraw US troops from Afghanistan by September 11
- The deadline for pulling out the remaining 2,500 troops is set 20 years after the al-Qaeda attacks that triggered America’s longest war
- A US intelligence report forecasts low chances of a peace deal this year and warns the local government will struggle to hold the Taliban at bay without support
The disclosure of the plan came on the same day that the US intelligence community released a gloomy outlook for Afghanistan, forecasting “low” chances of a peace deal this year and warning that its government would struggle to hold the Taliban insurgency at bay if the US-led coalition withdraws support.
Biden’s decision would miss a May 1 deadline for withdrawal agreed to with the Taliban by his predecessor Donald Trump. The insurgents had threatened to resume hostilities against foreign troops if that deadline was missed. But Biden would still be setting a near-term withdrawal date, potentially allaying Taliban concerns.
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The Democratic president was expected to publicly announce his decision on Wednesday, the White House said. A senior Biden administration official said the pull-out would begin before May 1 and could be complete well before the September 11 deadline.
Significantly, it will not would be subject to further conditions, including security or human rights.
“The president has judged that a conditions-based approach, which has been the approach of the past two decades, is a recipe in staying in Afghanistan forever,” the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said in a briefing with reporters.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed the decision with Nato allies in Brussels on Wednesday, saying it was time to make good on the mantra that they went into Afghanistan together and would leave together.