Joe Biden vows to withdraw all US troops from Afghanistan by September 11

United States President Joe Biden has decided to withdraw all American troops from Afghanistan by September 11. The date marks the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on America that were coordinated from Afghanistan, said the US officials on April 13. The US administration has extended the earlier deadline of May 1 set by the Trump administration in agreement with the Taliban. 

President Biden has decided to draw down the remaining US troops from Afghanistan and finally end the U.S. war there after 20 years. We will begin an orderly drawdown of the remaining forces before May 1st and plan to have all U.S. troops out of the country before the 20th anniversary of 9/11. 

US troops withdrawal from Afghanistan

Biden had decided that the deadline for withdrawal of US forces had to be absolute rather than provisional based on the conditions in Afghanistan, said a senior official in a press call in the White House. The official added that Biden said that the conditioned withdrawal is a way of staying in Afghanistan forever. The extension in the timeline will allow a safe withdrawal of American troops in coordination with NATO allies. The officials further said that the US remains engaged with the government of Afghanistan to work for the Afghani people who sacrificed a lot during the conflict. 

The President has judged that a conditions-based approach, which has been the approach of the past two decades, is a recipe for staying in Afghanistan forever. The officials further said that the US remains engaged with the government of Afghanistan to work for the Afghani people who sacrificed a lot during the conflict. 

Biden's decision risks retaliation by the Taliban on US and Afghan forces that would escalate the 20-year war. Meanwhile, the Taliban has rejected the United States plan to restore peace in Afghanistan. They have also firmly opposed the proposed delay in the withdrawal of the American troops. They have announced the decision in English on the Taliban's Voice of Jihad website. 

US Taliban peace plan

Last year, the United States and Taliban had signed a deal intending to restore peace in Afghanistan. The agreement called for the US withdrawing its troops in return for security guarantees from the militants and a commitment to starting peace talks with the Afghan government. The Taliban committed to preventing Al Qaeda, from using Afghan soil for activities that threaten the US or its allies. But, now the Biden administration has decided to delay the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan until September 2021. 

(Image and Inputs from AP)