AMN / WEB DESK
US President Joe Biden met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at the White House on Friday, even as the US troop continues to withdraw from Afghanistan.
During the meet Biden pledged a “sustained” US-Afghanistan relationship, despite the pullout from the war-torn country. At the same time, Biden said US forces should take a step back from the conflict.
US forces have been in Afghanistan for nearly two decades.
President Biden emphasized enduring United States support for the Afghan people, including Afghan women, girls, and minorities, through civilian, development, and humanitarian aid, as well as the continued provision of security assistance to support Afghan National Defense and Security Forces. President Biden expressed his concern about the recent increase in COVID-19 cases in Afghanistan, and noted additional emergency U.S. assistance, including three million doses of vaccines, to help the Afghan government respond to the pandemic. President Biden, President Ghani, and Chairman Abdullah concurred on the need for unity among Afghan leaders in support of peace and stability, and President Biden reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to fully support intra-Afghan negotiations.
Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah was also present at the meeting.
“Afghans are going to have to decide their future,” Biden told reporters. The US president added that the “senseless violence has to stop” in Afghanistan.
Concern in Afghanistan ahead of US troop withdrawal
US troops invaded Afghanistan in 2001 following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and have remained in the country for nearly two decades. Critics warn the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban will take over the country following the US withdrawal.
Ghani said the US-Afghan relationship is entering a new era, and added that he respects Biden’s pullout decision. He said Afghan government troops retook six districts in the country from enemy forces on Friday.
“We are determined to have unity, coherence,” Ghani said
The Afghan leaders also met with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday. The leaders met with Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, an ardent critic of the pullout, on Thursday.
US is withdrawing 2,500 US troops from Afghanistan by September 11 because he believes American on-the-ground military operations have gone on for long enough in the South Asian country. He contends the US should focus on other security threats, such as the rise of China.
The war in Afghanistan has also had an enormous human cost fo the American military. The Defense Department says 2,400 US troops have been killed and over 20,000 injured since the war began in 2001.
For Afghans, the cost has been even greater, with some estimates showing around 66,000 Afghan troops have been killed in the past two decades. Millions of Afghan civilians have also been forced to flee their homeland due to the fighting.