The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan continues to cast a shadow over the Biden administration, amid mutual accusations among various agencies due to the chaos that ensued, especially in the final days of the withdrawal. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley directly blamed the State Department for the evacuation process from Afghanistan, which he described as a failure.
In a closed briefing with Senate members on Tuesday, he stated that officials "waited too long" to order the exit from Kabul Airport, according to two sources familiar with the briefing who spoke to Axios. During two days of testimony alongside Milley, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and General Frank McKenzie, head of Central Command, confirmed that there are significant divisions between the State Department and the Pentagon.
Calls for Accountability
Meanwhile, lawmakers are demanding accountability for the chaotic exit of the Biden administration from Afghanistan, including the failure to evacuate thousands of at-risk Afghan allies and leaving without evacuating all Americans. The State Department postponed evacuation operations at President Biden's behest after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani warned that evacuating Afghan allies earlier would damage morale and lead to the government’s collapse.
Republicans, for their part, called for the resignation of Milley, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and even President Biden.
Severe Criticism
Blinken was the first senior official from Biden to testify before Congress regarding Afghanistan. He faced severe criticism and calls for resignation from several Republicans, yet remained largely composed under pressure. Representative Mike Rogers (Republican from Alabama), the highest-ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, stated after hearing from the generals: "We must acknowledge that the State Department and the White House are responsible for this disaster, not the Department of Defense," based on his testimony yesterday.
