On Tuesday, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that the Taliban had notified the US administration that civilians attempting to reach Kabul's international airport would be given safe passage.
“The Taliban have informed us that they are prepared to provide a safe passage of civilians to the airport, and we intend to hold them to that commitment,” Sullivan told reporters, according to Al Jazeera.
The Hamid Karzai International Airport was operating, according to Sullivan, and aircraft transporting US citizens and Afghan civilians were departing. On Monday, shocking images were observed at the airport as thousands of Afghan people raced there to flee the Taliban. Footage of the pandemonium at the airport prompted harsh criticism of President Joe Biden's handling of the Afghanistan issue.
After rumors that the Taliban were barring roads, Sullivan informed reporters that those wishing to escape appear to have been able to get to the airport.
"We've discovered that, for the most part, individuals have been able to travel to the airport. In reality, a huge number of individuals were able to come to the airport and make their presence known. We've heard stories of individuals being turned away, pushed back, or even beaten, and we're working with the Taliban to fix those concerns "According to Al Jazeera, Sullivan said.
Sullivan also defended the Biden administration's handling of the US troop withdrawal, blaming the previous Trump administration for troop reductions. "Some say that we could have maintained a stable, peaceful Afghanistan with 2,500 troops, which was the number of troops in the nation when President Biden entered office; this is just incorrect. The previous administration reduced the number of troops in Afghanistan from 15,000 to 2,500, and even at that level, the Afghan government forces were losing territory "According to Al Jazeera, Sullivan said.
"What has happened over the last month has demonstrated unequivocally that stopping a Taliban attack would have required a substantial American force presence, many times higher than what President Biden was given. And we would have suffered losses, with American men and women fighting and dying in Afghanistan once more "Sullivan said.
