U.S. President Joe Biden stated that he takes responsibility for the decision to withdraw from Afghanistan, noting that he received recommendations and advice regarding the possibility of deteriorating conditions in the country. Biden's remarks came during a press conference on Friday when he was asked about an internal memo from the U.S. State Department since mid-July warning that the situation in the country could deteriorate rapidly and lead to the collapse of the Afghan government.
Biden said there were suggestions ranging from one group indicating that the collapse would occur over a long period and that government forces would be capable of relying on themselves until the end of the year. He continued: "I made the decision. The responsibility falls on me. I made the consensus opinion, and the consensus opinion was that, in fact, that (collapse) would not happen; if it did, it would happen later in the year. It was my decision."
He mentioned that there would be "ample time for criticism and second-guessing" of his administration's actions in Afghanistan once the evacuation process is complete but stated that, for now, he is "focused on accomplishing this task."
Additionally, Biden noted that "there were no questions" from allies regarding the credibility of the United States on the global stage, and mentioned that a G7 meeting would be held next week to coordinate a "unified approach."
On another note, Biden said that coordination with Taliban leadership was what led to the successful evacuations from Afghanistan, while emphasizing that "we communicated to the Taliban that any attack would be met with a swift and strong response." He indicated that 13,000 people had been evacuated from Afghanistan since August 14, while considering the evacuation mission to involve risks for U.S. troops.
Biden explained that the decision for U.S. forces not to create a corridor outside Kabul Airport "could potentially lead to many unintended consequences." He also mentioned that U.S. military forces have recently exited the vicinity of Kabul Airport to bring back 169 Americans. Moreover, he stated that the White House is exploring "every opportunity" to rescue the Americans and Afghans stranded behind Taliban checkpoints.
