Biden Admin Defends Afghanistan Withdrawal, Blames Trump

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Facts

  • The US National Security Council (NSC) on Thursday released a 12-page summary of its review of the failed August 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, placing extensive blame on Donald Trump's admin. despite the move being ordered by and taking place under Pres. Joe Biden.1
  • The report pointed out that Trump ordered talks with the Taliban and the removal of US troops by May 2021 but claimed he fell short of giving Biden plans on how to carry out the final withdrawal during the government transition.2
  • NSC spokesman John Kirby claimed that Pres. Biden led a rigorous decision-making process responsive to facts on the ground, rejecting the notion that the withdrawal was chaotic despite the death of 13 US troops in a deadly bombing at Kabul International Airport.3
  • Intelligence and military assessments prior to the withdrawal suggested maintaining 2.5K troops while negotiators worked on a peace deal, but the report argued such a move 'would not have sustained a stable and peaceful Afghanistan.'4
  • Former NSC official under Trump, Lisa Curtis, said that while there were failures by both administrations, she did advise the Biden admin. to renegotiate a deal with the Taliban during the transition, but they chose not to follow her suggestion.5
  • The full, classified report was set to be shared with US House and Senate committees later on Thursday.1

Sources: 1New York Times, 2Daily Caller, 3CNN, 4Wall Street Journal and 5USA Today.

Narratives

  • Republican narrative, as provided by Bizpac review. For anyone paying attention, this report is clearly a political stunt aimed at diverting blame away from those responsible. The Biden admin. handed it out to reporters just ten minutes before John Kirby's press conference, which is a classic PR move to ensure those who want to ask questions have no time to review the material at hand. Biden was in charge of this withdrawal and had every intelligence and military tool at his disposal, but he choked, and now he's playing blame games instead of taking responsibility for the 13 Americans who died under his watch.
  • Democratic narrative, as provided by USA Today. Any dutiful outgoing administration would have worked tirelessly to help prepare the incoming president for such an important military operation, but Trump failed to do that. He made America look weak by inviting the Taliban to Camp David on the 18th anniversary of 9/11 and then telling them when the withdrawal would take place. Yes, the Biden admin. should have anticipated the collapse and evacuated troops sooner, but its choices were constrained by conditions created by his predecessor.

Predictions