Joe Biden’s miscalculation will haunt the rest of his presidency
THE EDITORIAL BOARD
2/ The deal itself was simple: The Taliban promised (on the lives of their mums, daughters etc) not to hurt the US or its allies again. In return, they got the following five things:
— Paul Nuki (@PaulNuki) August 16, 2021
i/ A complete withdrawal of all US and allied troops under an agreed time line. Nice... pic.twitter.com/26A1VHAAyK
I'm seeing a lot of crocodile tears by Western imperialists over Afghan women but are they going to speak about Syrian women under Al-Qaeda rule in Idlib? The experience tells us they will side with Al-Nusra against the SAA. pic.twitter.com/EUK1iePEXW
— Kevork Almassian???????????????? (@KevorkAlmassian) August 18, 2021
First, the title. The Afghan people didn't choose "us" either. We invaded in 2002 when the author of the oped was [checks notes] NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER.
— Eli Clifton (@EliClifton) August 18, 2021
Scenes outside the airport in Kabul this afternoon. Let’s be straight here: the Taliban are not the reason why people cannot get out. The Americans are. The US military is not allowing chartered aircraft land so that they fly vulnerable Afghans out. Shameful pic.twitter.com/jNGYU5MmlN
— Saad Mohseni (@saadmohseni) August 19, 2021
Spoiler alert: Most of the president's latest claims about Afghanistan are either incorrect or untruthful https://t.co/qzO8pa4HjE
— Jonathan Eyal (@JEyal_RUSI) August 21, 2021
More prevarication. You can’t say “This falls on my shoulders” then keep saying you’re not responsible and that this disaster was inevitable. He doesn’t own the entire war, but he does own the ongoing shitshow. https://t.co/nW8iZNUnX9
— Blake Herzinger (@BDHerzinger) August 19, 2021
In an interview with CBS's Face the Nation, State Sec. Antony Blinken admits the Biden administration has to ask the Taliban permission to evacuate American citizens from Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/k8hSUMDpGL
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) August 22, 2021
EXCLUSIVE: Pressed on whether the U.S.'s exit from Afghanistan could have been handled better, Pres. Biden tells @GStephanopoulos, "The idea that somehow, there's a way to have gotten out without chaos ensuing—I don't know how that happens." https://t.co/mH1AyWI5lb pic.twitter.com/osAwdDQy2L
— ABC News (@ABC) August 18, 2021
I am afraid I still find this a persuasive account by @RoryStewartUK - if indeed what he’s saying is true - the academic policy defenders of withdrawal r making lucid arguments (eg @PatPorter76 ) but they don’t square with Rory’s narrative where am I or where is he going wrong? https://t.co/tmzRPGdfUL
— Phillip Blond (@Phillip_Blond) August 20, 2021
US withdrawal from Afghanistan does not carry lessons for Taiwan's future. This is a great thread ????The US and Taiwan have deep historical ties. Taiwan is a vibrant democracy. We share the same values. We have strong economic and people-to-people ties. 1/n https://t.co/wDeXdyh07G
— Bonnie Glaser / 葛來儀 (@BonnieGlaser) August 18, 2021
Yes, shelve the political point scoring. The Biden admin chose to embrace what Trump set in motion. The entire American political and military establishment, as well as the adjacent pundit class, owns this debacle. And it's ordinary Afghans paying the price. https://t.co/jUe6ygM7NP
— Ishaan Tharoor (@ishaantharoor) August 16, 2021
Genuinely do not understand why journalism like this exists. https://t.co/VoeN8W2XmE pic.twitter.com/rbptVcsioG
— Michael Hobbes (@RottenInDenmark) August 16, 2021
glad we’re centering the true victim in all this: Joseph Robinette Biden pic.twitter.com/AfPStQjX8f
— Adam H. Johnson (@adamjohnsonNYC) July 15, 2021
看阿政权溃状便知,今天是美迟早要面对的耻辱.佩服拜登敢于在任内冒政治风险去面对它.
— 楊建利 Yang Jianli (@yangjianli001) August 17, 2021
近年来对美政治有许多观察反思,心得无法在此完整叙述.简单就当前国际政局说事,美必须改变自负和救世主心态,需要在相当长时间里致力于美国民主的自省自救,其中包括联合盟友抵御中共对美民主价值和世界自由秩序的侵害. https://t.co/4CKyZqwUrw
THREAD: For nearly two decades, America has sought to remake Afghanistan on a western model. It turns out that Afghanistan was never America’s to fix. I was part of the foreign policy establishment that tried to find technical solutions for the challenges of nation-building. 1/18
— Chris Chivvis (@CChivvis) August 16, 2021
Shame on the US gov.
— Kobra Moradi (@KobraMoradi) August 16, 2021
Stop spilling salt on our bruises. You have done enough. Commercial flights out of Kabul were cancelled so the US could use the runway and airspace to get its embassy employees evacuated.
Even on Afghan soil, Afghan lives come last. https://t.co/WcupHf2tyN
Three days ago we were talking about the fall of Kabul in 90 days. This beats the fall of Malaya for egregiously bad intelligence assessments. https://t.co/SANfrHjJvK
— Blake Herzinger (@BDHerzinger) August 15, 2021
"There have been other Big Lies... for 20 years presidents of both parties told us again & again that we were winning in Afghanistan... Bush said it, Obama said it, Trump said it, Biden said it... They lied to us."
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) August 16, 2021
My @MSNBC opening monologue tonight:pic.twitter.com/kqV4mT0UQN
#BREAKING US Sec. of State Blinken insists Afghan mission 'successful', rejects comparison between Kabul and Saigon pic.twitter.com/29ZMYoKtt2
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 15, 2021
Left: The US Embassy in Saigon, 1975
— Asad Ugas (@AsadUgas) August 15, 2021
Right: The US Embassy in Kabul, 2021. #Taliban #Kabul #Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/TvW2JGIhlB
Can a president survive this? Will anyone take his statements seriously in the future?
— Bruno Ma??es (@MacaesBruno) August 15, 2021
pic.twitter.com/nFcrV1RP3x
#BREAKING Macron vows EU initiative to protect against migrant flows from Afghanistan pic.twitter.com/qstcbkmAyI
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 16, 2021
I spoke with People's Republic of China State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi concerning developments in Afghanistan and our respective efforts to bring both our citizens home safely.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 16, 2021
1/The collapse of the Government in Afghanistan this past week was so swift and complete - it was disorienting and difficult to comprehend.
— Ajmal Ahmady (@aahmady) August 16, 2021
This is how the events seemed to proceed from my perspective as Central Bank Governor.
Smart thread. I would add that the most serious damage might be in terms of the US’s future ability to cultivate and enroll proxies—a key factor in protracted great power competition. After all, this comes only two years after the sudden abandonment of the Kurds. In each case.. https://t.co/KWe13uH2Sh
— Iskander Rehman (@IskanderRehman) August 16, 2021
“We are staying, the embassy is staying, our programs are staying. If there is a significant deterioration in security...I don’t think it’s going to be something that happens from a Friday to a Monday.”
— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) August 16, 2021
- Sec State Tony Blinken
July 7 2021pic.twitter.com/j0kkFpwpJd
I don’t think I’ll ever forget this image and what it says about America’s war. Afghans clinging to the wheels of a fleeing US transporter fall from the sky. This is worse than Saigon. pic.twitter.com/haOThYUVfx
— Ben Judah (@b_judah) August 16, 2021
Washington Post publisher emails Biden national security adviser @JakeSullivan46: “Urgent request on behalf of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post” to help get “204 journalists, support staff and families” to safety
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) August 16, 2021
#BREAKING: US reaches deal with Taliban on evacuations: report https://t.co/WsCyx0ETX8 pic.twitter.com/0Io4zveCvH
— The Hill (@thehill) August 16, 2021
After Trump's Taliban deal, they were hard at work sabotaging him. This meant contradicting the administration in public, leaking unflattering stories to the press, etc. This is the strategy that has worked for 20 years. Were they suddenly going to cooperate with Biden? 14/n pic.twitter.com/AQrFUuRtZ5
— Richard Hanania (@RichardHanania) August 16, 2021
So the argument has to be the US, who literally can't do anything in Afghanistan in 20 years, was suddenly going to competently run the Kabul airport, which they can't get to but by helicopter, under the most desperate conditions possible. If they only had a few more months 4/n
— Richard Hanania (@RichardHanania) August 16, 2021
China’s ambassador to #Afghanistan @ChinaEmbKabul confirmed personnel safety on the ground, saying they’ve evacuated most Chinese citizens there.
— Serena Dong (@theserenadong) August 16, 2021
Adding the current chaos in Afghanistan is the result of a failed #US policy as well as an irresponsible withdrawal.
德国总理默克尔今天首次对阿富汗局势正式表态,她承认在该国建立民主体制的尝试失败。
— DW 中文- 德国之声 (@dw_chinese) August 16, 2021
她预计阿富汗政权更迭后,难民数量会增加。
德国将从阿富汗疏散大约1万人,包括在当地为德军服务过的阿富汗人,但这一行动必须在美国帮助下才能实现。https://t.co/z7euvptnPg pic.twitter.com/P0yvMMr2HT
In one-on-one with @GStephanopoulos, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan placed blame for the speed of the Taliban takeover on the Afghan national security forces for decision “not to step up and fight for their country.” https://t.co/J8jrrLfCqI pic.twitter.com/3fpf2NuGOq
— ABC News (@ABC) August 16, 2021
It was known since 2016 that nearly 200k of the Afghan army’s purported 350k troops were non/existent “ghost soldiers” with the money for them vanishing into corruption. pic.twitter.com/9TF5NDsQdT
— Ben Judah (@b_judah) August 16, 2021
Many Chinese are confused over why Beijing is engaging with a group closely associated with terrorism and Xinjiang separatism. Weibo removed the trending hashtag “What kind of organization is the Taliban?” after it triggered a wave of condemnation https://t.co/DSj49K9gIt
— Viola Zhou (@violazhouyi) August 16, 2021
In a new statement, Rep. @sethmoulton minces few words about the events in Afghanistan and his fellow Democrats in the administration.
— Dan Lamothe (@DanLamothe) August 15, 2021
"To say that today is anything short of a disaster would be dishonest. Worse, it was avoidable," it begins.
US retreat is a "trap" set for China, according to Zhu Yongbiao, a Chinese expert on Afghanistan: "The current situation is a mess for the US, and will impact countries in the region, and then the impact will come to us [China]."https://t.co/NgxRuKtUVd
— Stuart Lau (@StuartKLau) August 16, 2021
American commanders hid fatal flaws in the Afghan army and police for more than a decade, according to documents obtained for a forthcoming Washington Post book https://t.co/5K5i1CKsNq
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) August 16, 2021
CNN's @clarissaward reports on what Afghanistan looks like as the Taliban take over.https://t.co/pJuaHC3iBC pic.twitter.com/zx9shFE8Lj
— New Day (@NewDay) August 16, 2021
Inside a US transport taking off from Kabul. Extraordinary. pic.twitter.com/rAAeFb2QQb
— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) August 16, 2021
I cannot believe this is now the sum of our new foreign policy to hold the Taliban to account:
— Tobias Ellwood MP (@Tobias_Ellwood) August 16, 2021
‘Applying sanctions and holding back ODA’.
This will not prevent a civil war - nor deter the Taliban from imposing a ruthless interpretation of Sharia law. pic.twitter.com/R9ah9Q1DT8
The Secret Deal b/w US, Taliban & Afghan Govt (A thread):
— The Afghan Perspective (@TAfPerspective) August 16, 2021
It is said that the trio agreed to peacefully handover #Afganistan to #Taliban. Which is why the 350K Forces including 10K AirForce collapsed like dominos in the span of a week only and without a single bullet fired. 1/7 pic.twitter.com/0az3qVymhK
Zarifa Ghafari, Afghanistan’s youngest mayor and the first woman to serve as mayor of Maidan Sharh province, told iNews that the Taliban "will come for people like me and kill me.
— Shawna Chen (@shawnarchen) August 16, 2021
Must-read from @ivanas26 and @DavidLawler10:https://t.co/ERBCqOdBkn
Fly them out now - to Guam, to Qatar, to Kuwait, wherever available - and process their cases from there. Saving the lives of our partners has to take precedence over paperwork. https://t.co/SGmpZbItcP
— Richard Fontaine (@RHFontaine) August 15, 2021
The month of June is recognized as (LGBTI) Pride Month. The United States respects the dignity & equality of LGBTI people & celebrates their contributions to the society. We remain committed to supporting civil rights of minorities, including LGBTI persons. #Pride2021 #PrideMonth pic.twitter.com/qgKPQAPaOY
— U.S. Embassy Kabul (@USEmbassyKabul) June 2, 2021
..The British Ambassador to Afghanistan has stayed at the airport
— UK is with EU (@ukiswitheu) August 15, 2021
..Personally processing the visas of Afghan interpreters who will be flown to the UK#C4News
FCO website says its Sir Laurie Bristow pic.twitter.com/sOzAdGn0Rl
One of my favorite tidbits in a SIGAR report. The whole story in a few sentences. pic.twitter.com/1Z8EXcBhor
— Dan Murphy (@bungdan) August 15, 2021
The real story out of Afghanistan is that the Pentagon and every US commander since 2012 has LIED to the American people about the capability of Afghan Forces. The Afghan's stark corruption and collapse within a month is all we got for $2 trillion & thousands of American lives
— Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) August 14, 2021
"There are lessons to be learned on how each admin handled Afgh from start to finish & we owe it to the members of the military & other Amers who put their lives in harm’s way to plumb these lessons for future decision making,” said Michele Flournoy." 2/https://t.co/u4Qgl7Erqg
— Elbridge Colby (@ElbridgeColby) August 16, 2021
阿富汗政府以惊人的速度垮台,塔利班似乎肯定会重新全面控制该国,此时,距离9月11日袭击事件纪念日不到一个月。
— 纽约时报中文网 (@nytchinese) August 16, 2021
拜登政府在执行撤军时犯下一系列重大错误。无论公平与否,拜登将以这样的形象被载入史册:在他的领导下,美国在阿富汗的实验以这样一个耻辱性的方式落幕。https://t.co/9ZE5IgQwcW
“As an Afghan woman, I would like for President Biden to hear me,” says Afghanistan’s first female air force pilot Niloofar Rahmani. “Please save the families. They need you. The women, the little girls — and please save my family.” https://t.co/p9yUBEBtzc
— Jon Cooper ???????? (@joncoopertweets) August 17, 2021
Yes this, also maybe John Bolton doesn’t need to be interviewed at all, ever? https://t.co/9DQepvEhP3
— Rachel Rizzo (@RachelRizzo) August 16, 2021
Ex-Obama adviser argues Biden should fire Sullivan over Afghanistan https://t.co/g5VmVxwcwh pic.twitter.com/ht7oR2tKzU
— The Hill (@thehill) August 17, 2021
Serious ? ilo of pretty devastating @laraseligman story below: If our intelligence assessments were so badly off, how much were we really gaining on the ground re CT? No ? we were gaining info of some value by being there, but just how valuable was it really? cc @JJSchroden https://t.co/nfywXA2tVa
— Elbridge Colby (@ElbridgeColby) August 17, 2021
Some thoughts on Afghanistan ?? pic.twitter.com/tibwLKJ5oq
— Blake Masters (@bgmasters) August 17, 2021
69,000 Afghan soldiers died fighting against the Taliban. They don't deserve to be written out of history. https://t.co/jYLzS30Ca3
— George Eaton (@georgeeaton) August 17, 2021
The next time you see someone argue that US soldiers occupying a country actually makes its people more secure & improves their lives, show them this video. This is exactly the kind of sadistic & arbitrary destruction they partake in habitually with glee. pic.twitter.com/1Aw3BYWNmR
— Louis Allday (@Louis_Allday) August 17, 2021
1. There is no end to the effort in this scheme. None. If we agree that governance + other key indicators were stuck or in reverse, this clever stratagem ties the US to a truly forever war. What major democracy has ever maintained such a role (in *active* combat) for 3+ decades?
— Mike Mazarr (@MMazarr) August 17, 2021
Quite the moment: After Mujahid says Taliban have announced all encompassing amnesty, Afghan reporter asks — do you think the people of Afghanistan will forgive you too for the explosions and suicide bombings?
— Mujib Mashal (@MujMash) August 17, 2021
Mujahid’s response: “colateral damage” happens. https://t.co/0ScREx7Tod
A portrait of Ashraf Ghani, the failed leader who bolted Kabul, leaving his own people to deal with the deadly chaos and frightening uncertainty under the country’s once and future Taliban rulers — w/ ?@AdamNossiter? https://t.co/jwLZLXnh0U
— Matthew Rosenberg (@AllMattNYT) August 16, 2021
First, Afghan security forces were not defeated on the battlefield. District, provincial, and national ANA commanders negotiated surrender deals. This suggests that morale had utterly collapsed. The Taliban takeover was virtually bloodless, at least in terms of major battles. 2/9
— Seth G. Jones (@SethGJones) August 16, 2021
The withdrawal of all contractors and “supporting services personnel” was part of the deal that Trump and Pompeo negotiated with the Taliban 18 months ago. https://t.co/2n8Az6pFdQ https://t.co/pkYFZnnsbA pic.twitter.com/tFGCiEKpyD
— southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) August 17, 2021
agreed: https://t.co/uJ8l3Ala0a
— Jennifer 'pro-voting' Rubin (@JRubinBlogger) August 17, 2021
CENTCOM commander should have insisted Bagram remain open. This should have been non-negotiable and he should have resigned in protest if he was forced to operate in this environment. Sometimes you need to stand up and have courage. Our commanders have none.
— Bill Roggio (@billroggio) August 16, 2021
Again, it’s sad to see people like @RichardEngel parachuting in with inaccurate narratives as #Afghanistan falls. There was only an illusion of “status quo” to people who didn’t follow AFG closely enough since 2015 https://t.co/bpzCQILoQz
— Dr. Jonathan Schroden (@JJSchroden) August 15, 2021
They did, and so did @SIGARHQ & those of us conducting independent assessments as well https://t.co/g8ClBiiTly
— Dr. Jonathan Schroden (@JJSchroden) August 16, 2021
Russia says Afghan president Ashraf Ghani fled w/cars and helicopter full of cash. "4 cars were full of money. They tried to stuff another part of the money into a helicopter, but not all of it fit. " Russian spokesman said https://t.co/55maIVzGiz
— amanda hodge (@hodgeamanda) August 16, 2021
萨奇:塔利班难道不担心自己的国际形象吗?
foreign policy: corruption, money
power sharing
Northrop Grumman: 1,196%
Boeing: 975%
General Dynamics: 625%
Raytheon: 331%
Milley: There was nothing that I or anyone else saw that indicated a collapse of this army and this government in 11 days pic.twitter.com/Jso2NXD13x
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 18, 2021
Absolutely wild that the Europeans are getting this worked up about a mission they largely abandoned two presidents ago https://t.co/zI8XJpfO7w
— Christopher Hooks (@cd_hooks) August 30, 2021
???????? https://t.co/xflE8GglWo pic.twitter.com/BDDOVycWkR
— Walker Bragman (@WalkerBragman) August 29, 2021
Local officials say five or six civilians, including children, were killed.
Capt. Bill Urban of CENTCOM: "We would be deeply saddened by any potential loss of innocent life."