Antony Blinken confirms US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan: “It’s time to go home”

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, said this Wednesday in Brussels that the time had come to “bring home” the NATO troops that remain in Afghanistan, and that Washington would work on a “coordinated” withdrawal with its allies.

“Together we have achieved the objectives that we have set ourselves. And now is the time to bring our troops home.” Blinken said in Brussels, adding that “we are going to work together in the coming weeks and months on a safe, determined and coordinated withdrawal.”

The head of US diplomacy made these statements when he arrived at NATO headquarters for a meeting with the secretary general of the transatlantic military alliance, Jens Stoltenberg.

He noted that although NATO will deepen its discussions on the withdrawal of troops, “our commitment to Afghanistan and its future will remain.”

For his part, Stoltenberg welcomed the “opportunity to coordinate and consult with all the allies, for an agreement on our future presence in Afghanistan”.

This Wednesday, the foreign ministers of the United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany will hold talks on the presence of NATO troops in Afghanistan.

On Tuesday, the government of USA announced its decision to withdraw all its troops from Afghanistan by September 11 of this year.

President Joe Biden is scheduled to make that decision official on Wednesday.

NATO would join the United States and withdraw its troops from Afghanistan in September, German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said Wednesday.

The UK would do the same, The Times reported Wednesday.

The government of former President Donald Trump had reached an agreement with the Taliban that planned to complete the withdrawal of troops on May 1.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that Turkey, Qatar and the UN will organize a high-level conference in Istanbul from April 24 to May 4, to discuss a path to peace in Afghanistan.