Turning away from Afghanistan at this time would be a big mistake: Zalmay Khalilzad

Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US ambassador to Afghanistan, says that the reason for the withdrawal of US forces was that Washington was focused on countering major powers such as China and Russia and was no longer interested in Afghanistan.

Zalmay Khalilzad, who was the central figure of the US agreement with the Taliban in Doha, made this statement at the session of the US House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Relations titled ‘The failure of the Biden administration to implement the Doha agreement’.

He said another reason for the withdrawal of US forces was that Afghanistan was no longer a center of terrorism and the strategy of transforming the country into a modern democratic state through a process of nation building was ‘unrealistic’.

The meeting lasted for three hours, in which the relatives of 13 US soldiers killed in a suicide attack near Kabul Airport were also invited.

Zalmay Khalilzad added that Ashraf Ghani’s departure from Afghanistan hindered the transfer of power. “At the last minute we managed to stop the Taliban from entering Kabul, but Ashraf Ghani suddenly fled, causing the army and police to become disorganized. Because of this situation, the Taliban entered Kabul.

According to the former diplomat: ‘Ashraf Ghani had agreed to a power-sharing agreement with the Taliban and it was decided that an interim government would begin its work on September 1.’ He blamed the defeat largely on the Afghan government and former President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani’s defection.

In an interview last year, Ashraf Ghani blamed the fall of power on the United States and some of its partners, saying that he was forced to leave Kabul to stop the bloodshed and that if he had stayed, he would have been “killed by the Taliban.” could.’

On August 31, 2021, the US-led NATO forces had completed their withdrawal from Afghanistan, but before that, on August 15, the Afghan Taliban announced that they would establish their own government by taking control of Kabul.

Zalmay Khalilzad added that ‘the last chapter regarding Afghanistan has not been written yet and it would be a big mistake to turn away from Afghanistan at this time.’

Khalilzad’s testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee lacked updates on the Doha agreement, the reason for the US withdrawal and the end of the Ghani administration, according to observers. Contrary to the claims of some Afghan politicians, he avoided mentioning any ‘secret agreements and annexes’ related to the Doha agreement.

In this meeting, Khalilzad defended the Doha agreement with the Taliban, but also faced tough questions and criticism from members of Congress.

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