'Dangerous, unnecessary': Ex-UK PM Tony Blair on Britain's 'abandonment' of Afghanistan

Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, who marked Britain’s entry in the war-ravaged Afghanistan in 2001, on 21 August denounced the “abandonment” of the British troops as “dangerous” and “unnecessary.”

In his first public remark since the Taliban re-conquered Afghanistan last week, Blair wrote a detailed article published on his foundation’s website where he severely denounced the actions taken by Western countries. According to him, the return of the Taliban will see “every jihadist group round the world cheering.”

The former UK prime minister wrote, “The abandonment of Afghanistan and its people is tragic, dangerous, unnecessary, not in their interests and not in ours.”

He added, “In the aftermath of the decision to return Afghanistan to the same group from which the carnage of 9/11 arose, and in a manner that seems almost designed to parade our humiliation, the question posed by allies and enemies alike is: has the West lost its strategic will?”

Biden driven by ‘imbecilic political slogan’: Blair

Further, noting the impact of the Talibani takeover on other terror groups across the globe, Blair said that it is crucial and a moral obligation for Western troops to stay in Afghanistan until all the eligible people are evacuated from the war-torn nation. He also accused US President Joe Biden of being driven by “an imbecilic political slogan about ending ‘the forever wars,’ as if our engagement in 2021 was remotely comparable to our commitment 20 or even 10 years ago.”

Blair wrote, “The world is now uncertain of where the West stands because it is so obvious that the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan in this way was driven not by grand strategy but by politics.”

The former UK prime minister called on both the United States and the United Kingdom to fulfil their respective obligations to Afghan nationals who had assisted them in the last two decades. However, Blair’s remarks came as governments worry that there might only be a few days for flights to leave the country.

Meanwhile, Biden has repeatedly given unclear messages regarding America’s evacuation programme. As per The Guardian, Britain is unlikely to continue its refugee process once the US troops leave Afghanistan. 

Blair wrote, “We must evacuate and give sanctuary to those to whom we have responsibility – those Afghans who helped us, stood by us and have a right to demand we stand by them. There must be no repetition of arbitrary deadlines.”

“We have a moral obligation to keep at it until all those who need to be are evacuated. And we should do so not grudgingly but out of a deep sense of humanity and responsibility,” he added.

(Image: AP)