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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – On Wednesday, the Taliban’s blitzkrieg on Afghan territory expanded, with insurgents claiming control of 9 of the country’s 34 capital cities.
Afghan and US officials warned that catastrophic violence will occur in this war-torn 39 million country, as the deadline for all US troops to withdraw by the end of August is approaching.
In an interview with CNBC on Wednesday, Nader Nadery, a senior member of the Afghanistan Peace Negotiation Group, expressed serious concern about the rapidly deteriorating situation.
“If the Taliban make military progress, the area will be burnt down. This war will not be contained within Afghanistan,” Nardelli told CNBC’s Capital Connection.
When asked what he thinks are the most immediate dangers facing the international community, Nardelli, who has experienced decades of turmoil in Afghanistan, described that, driven by the feeling of defeating Western powers, terrorist activities may be far outside the country. Places have proliferated.
Fear is “the integration of power of all terrorist organizations [under] The umbrella of the Taliban and the space the Taliban provides for them,” Nardelli said.
“The slogan of every jihadist-minded terrorist organization now is’Now that we have defeated the United States and its 42 allies in Afghanistan, we can hunt them down anywhere’,” Nardelli added. “This slogan is a clear danger. It will enable groups like Da’esh (ISIS), Al Qaeda and other organizations to unite more people because they are marching and they feel victorious.”
“The Taliban told us in person that they have defeated the United States and NATO allies,” he continued. “This is not an easy slogan for them to give up. It is a danger for any unimaginative young people in the region and the broader global stage. They will unite around this slogan, which is not It’s easy to be dangerous.”
International terrorism arising from war-torn countries cannot be more familiar. Al Qaeda grew stronger in the 1990s because it was provided a safe haven by the Afghan Taliban government to provide a base for the planned September 11 attack, which prompted the United States to invade Afghanistan for the first time nearly 20 years ago.
The Taliban’s recent international legitimacy also supports the Taliban’s power across Afghanistan. U.S. and Taliban peace agreement And recent visits to China by its senior members Relations with Beijing are heating up.
“Unfortunately, China gave them [the Taliban] Just on the recent red carpet, if we are to see a stable area, these things need to end,” Nardelli said.
“They must fight for themselves”
At the White House on Tuesday, President Joe Biden told reporters, He does not regret his decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, Although the Taliban have made shocking gains.
Biden said: “Look, we have spent more than one trillion dollars in two decades to train and equip more than 300,000 Afghan troops with modern equipment.”
“The Afghan leaders must unite,” the president added. “They must fight for themselves, fight for their country.”
In April, Biden ordered a full withdrawal of approximately 3,000 U.S. Army from Afghanistan Until September 11.
The arduous task of withdrawing Pentagon generals and equipment from Afghanistan is nearly complete, and the US military mission is scheduled to end on August 31.
Since the United States began to withdraw its troops from this war-torn country, although the number of Afghan troops far exceeds the Taliban, it has made amazing progress on the battlefield.
On Wednesday, the Taliban occupied three provincial capitals in Afghanistan and a local army headquarters in Kunduz. According to the Associated PressThe victory on Wednesday gave the Taliban approximately two-thirds of state control.
not to mention, The Taliban quickly occupied five provincial capitals in Afghanistan On weekends, one person eats three a day.
On July 23, 2021, a member of the Afghan Special Forces participated in a military operation against Taliban fighters in Kandak Anayat Village, Kunduz City, Afghanistan.
Ajmal Kakar | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images
At the Pentagon, spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday that although the Biden administration plans to continue to provide air support, the U.S. military is powerless.
“We will certainly provide support from the air where and when feasible, but this cannot replace ground leadership, cannot replace Kabul’s political leadership, and cannot replace the ability and capabilities we know they have,” Kirby said.
Kirby added that while the Pentagon is worried about the Taliban’s progress, the Afghan army must now take advantage of years of training by the United States and NATO coalition forces.
“They have an air force, but the Taliban don’t. They have modern weapons and organizational capabilities, but the Taliban don’t. They have better numbers than the Taliban,” Kirby said. “They have advantages, and now is the time to take advantage of them.”
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby speaks at the Pentagon Press Conference in Arlington, Virginia, on January 28, 2021.
Yasin Ozturk | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
As the security situation in Afghanistan deteriorates, the US State Department is studying ways to reduce the size of the US embassy in Kabul. Approximately 600 US troops are protecting the embassy grounds.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters when asked about the layoffs in Kabul on Tuesday: “Obviously, this is a challenging security environment. Can we, do we have confidence, whether we are willing to have it there? More staffing.”
“We are assessing the threat environment every day. The embassy and Washington maintain regular contact with the most senior people in this building, and they in turn maintain regular contact with our colleagues in Washington. [National Security Council] At the White House,” Price added.
Amanda Marcias Washington contributed to this report.
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