UNITED STATES—On Friday, August 13, it was announced that the Pentagon is moving U.S. troops including 3,000 marines to Afghanistan. An additional 4,000 troops have been deployed to the region to evacuate thousands of U.S. citizens and Afghan interpreters.
U.S. officials are reportedly destroying sensitive documents and equipment, as the Taliban closes in on the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. Military officials have reported that as the Biden administration braces for a possible collapse of the Afghan government within the next month.
According to reports, the Taliban has seized Kandahar, Lashkar Gah, and Herat. The Taliban is now in control of 65 percent of Afghanistan after Afghan forces were taken by surprise.
According to reports, the Pentagon notified military commanders prior to Joe Biden’s inauguration to prepare for withdrawal. The agreement was part of former President Donald Trump’s campaign promise to “end long wars and bring our soldiers home.”
Trump shared his initial plan in bringing soldiers home to reduce troops slowly from 4,500 troops in Afghanistan down to 2,500. In Iraq, there were 3,000 troops deployed. In addition, Iraq which had 3,000 troops would be reduced to 2,500. The U.S. would allow troops to go back home, while keeping a military presence in an area that has threatened the U.S. for decades.
On April 14, President Biden announced that the U.S. would not be meeting the deadline set under the U.S.-Taliban agreement to withdraw all troops by May 1.
“I believed that our presence in Afghanistan should be focused on the reason we went in the first place: to ensure Afghanistan would not be used as a base from which to attack our homeland again. We did that. We accomplished that objective,” said President Biden.
“We will not conduct a hasty rush to the exit. We’ll do it—responsibly, deliberately, and safely. And we will do it in full coordination with our allies and partners, who now have more forces in Afghanistan than we do,” Biden added.
“Earlier today, I was briefed by our senior military and national security leaders on the status of the drawdown of the U.S. forces and allied forces in Afghanistan…..Our military mission in Afghanistan will conclude on August 31st,” said President Biden on July 8.
