Withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan (2021)

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This article is about the 2020–2021 withdrawal. For the 2011–2016 withdrawal, see Withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan (2011–2016).

2020–2021 withdrawal the United States troops from Afghanistan
Part of the Afghanistan War
C-17s support Afghanistan drawdown 2021.jpg
U.S. airmen board a C-17 at Al Udeid Air Base during the withdrawal, 27 April 2021
Date29 February 2020 – present
(4 years, 2 months, 3 weeks and 1 day)
Location
Afghanistan
Result Ongoing, set to end on August 31, 2021; Territorial control broadly contested between the US-backed Kabul government and the Taliban insurgency.
Belligerents
 United States
 Afghanistan
Resolute Support Mission		 Afghanistan Taliban
Commanders and leaders
United States Donald Trump
United States Joe Biden
United States Mark Esper
United States Lloyd Austin
United States Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr.
United States Austin S. Miller		 Afghanistan Hibatullah Akhundzada
Afghanistan Abdul Ghani Baradar
Template:Campaignbox Afghan War

The United States Armed Forces are scheduled to be withdrawn from Afghanistan by 31 August 2021, concluding Operation Freedom's Sentinel and NATO's Resolute Support Mission.[1] The U.S. and allied forces invaded and occupied the country in 2001 following the 11 September attacks, with the resulting war becoming the U.S.'s longest military engagement.

On 29 February 2020, the U.S. and the Taliban signed a peace agreement titled the Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan,[2] with provisions including the withdrawal of all regular American and NATO troops from Afghanistan, a Taliban pledge to prevent al-Qaeda from operating in areas under Taliban control, and talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government.[3] The deal was supported by China, Pakistan, and Russia,[4] and unanimously endorsed by the United Nations Security Council.[5]

The Trump administration agreed to an initial reduction of its force level from 13,000 to 8,600 by July 2020, followed by a full withdrawal by 1 May 2021 if the Taliban kept its commitments.[6] The Biden administration announced in April 2021 that it would continue the withdrawal beyond the initial deadline, with an expected completion date by 11 September 2021.[7] The Biden administration later announced that despite the withdrawal, it would keep 650 U.S. troops in Afghanistan to defend the U.S. Embassy in Kabul and defend the Hamid Karzai International Airport alongside Turkish troops.[8] On 8 July, Biden shifted the U.S. withdrawal deadline to 31 August.[9] Despite all of this, the Department of Defense stated that the U.S. will continue airstrikes on Taliban.[10]

Prior developments

Further information: Taliban insurgency and Afghan peace process

Obama administration

Further information: Withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan (2011–2016)

In 2011, President Barack Obama announced that the U.S. would withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, concluding Operation Enduring Freedom.[1][11][12] Although significant numbers of U.S. troops were withdrawn by 2014 and NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) had concluded, 9,800 U.S. soldiers remained deployed inside of Afghanistan during Operation Freedom's Sentinel, a part of NATO's subsequent Resolute Support Mission (RSM).[13] General John F. Campbell requested an additional 1,000 U.S. troops in light of the new military operation.[13]

Trump administration

U.S. President Donald Trump and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at the United Nations General Assembly, 2 October 2017

In the summer of 2017, with an official number of 8,400 U.S. troops operating in Afghanistan,[14] President Donald Trump gave the U.S. military decision-making authority to increase troop numbers for military operations in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan without first seeking formal agreement from the White House.[15][16] U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis praised the decision: "This assures the department can facilitate our missions and nimbly align our commitment to the situation on the ground. Our overall mission in Afghanistan remains the same, to train, advise and assist the Afghan forces so they can safeguard the Afghan people and terrorists can find no haven in Afghanistan for attacking us or others."[17] The broad outlines of the U.S.'s Afghanistan strategy that was in place since April 2017 were described as "an increase in special operations forces to train, advise and assist Afghan forces; a more robust plan to go after elements in Pakistan that aid the Taliban; the deployment of more air power and artillery; and a political commitment to the survival of the current government in Kabul."[18]

On 21 August 2017, President Trump unveiled his administration's strategy for Afghanistan, saying "victory will have a clear definition: attacking our enemies, obliterating the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), crushing al-Qaeda, preventing the Taliban from taking over the country, and stopping mass terror attacks against Americans before they emerge."[19][20] On 24 August, the commander for U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, General John W. Nicholson Jr., confirmed that troop levels, strategy, and conditions for success were dependent on the momentum of the war effort and on-the-ground conditions, not "arbitrary timelines."[21] Trump did not specify the number of troops to be committed under his new open-ended strategy, but congressional officials were told an additional 4,000 troops were to be deployed.[19] The Washington Post reported on 30 August that the additional U.S. forces for Afghanistan would likely include paratroopers as well as small Marine artillery detachments, composed of about 100 or so troops per unit, which were to be dispersed across the country to fill in gaps in air support.[22] According the report, air support in the form of more F-16 fighters, A-10 ground attack aircraft and additional B-52 bomber support, or a combination of all three, were likely be used.[22] The newspaper also stated: "The additional U.S. forces will allow Americans to advise Afghan troops in more locations and closer to the fighting, U.S. officials in Kabul said [...]. With more units farther away from the country's biggest bases, additional air support and artillery will be needed to cover those forces."[22] The New York Times added that "the American military will be able to advise select Afghan brigades in the field instead of trying to mentor them from more distant headquarters. They can step up the effort to train special operations forces and, thus, substantially increase the number of Afghan commandos. This will allow American war commanders and service members to call in air and artillery strikes on behalf of more Afghan units."[23]

On 30 August 2017, the Department of Defense disclosed that there were more troops in Afghanistan than previously acknowledged. The Pentagon stated the actual "total force" number was closer to 11,000 rather than the previously stated 8,400, with the larger number including covert as well as temporary units.[23][24] The lower troop-level estimate was a result of misleading accounting measures and red tape.[22]

General Austin S. Miller became commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan in September 2018 and oversaw the withdrawal until July 2021.

In September 2017, the Trump administration began deploying more than 3,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, bringing the total number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan to more than 14,000.[25][26][27] When General Austin "Scott" Miller took command of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan in September 2018, there were 15,000 U.S. troops deployed. In October 2019, following an abrupt end to peace talks with the Taliban a month prior, General Miller announced that U.S. forces had been reduced to 13,000 within a year as a result of a unilateral decision by the U.S. command in Kabul. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper commented on the troop decrease, saying "General Miller is doing exactly what I asked all our commanders to do when I entered office ... to look where they can free up time, money and manpower," as part of the National Defense Strategy to gradually shift global U.S. military strategy from prioritizing counter-terrorism to also countering Russia and China.[28] In December 2019, the Afghanistan Papers revealed that high-ranking military and government officials were generally of the opinion that the war in Afghanistan was unwinnable, but kept this hidden from the public.[29][30] By the end of 2019, nearly 2,400 Americans had died in the war, with more than 20,000 wounded.[28]

In February 2020, President Trump and NATO allies agreed to formulate a deal with the Taliban, allowing for a formal withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Afghanistan. Under the terms of the agreement, the Taliban promised to "not to allow al-Qaeda or any other extremist group to operate in the areas they control." The deal, titled the "Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan", saw U.S. and NATO forces withdrawing in earnest and set the deadline for a complete withdrawal of U.S. forces by 1 May 2021.[31][32] Trump left open the possibility of a renewed war effort if the Taliban were to violate the terms of the agreement, promising that, if terms were broken, "we'll go back with a force like no-one's ever seen."[31]

On 17 November 2020, acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Christopher C. Miller announced further withdrawals of troops by 15 January 2021, leaving 2,500 troops across both Afghanistan and Iraq, down from the previous amount of 4,500 and 3,000, respectively. U.S. National Security Advisor Robert C. O'Brien issued a statement on behalf of President Trump that it was his hope the incoming Biden administration would have all U.S. troops "come home safely, and in their entirety" by their previously agreed 1 May 2021 deadline.[33] Joe Biden had previously signalled his support for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan during his presidential campaign,[34] although he left room for the possibility that the U.S. would be "open to maintaining a small number of troops in the country whose mission would focus solely on counterterrorism operations."[35]

Withdrawal

On 29 February 2020, the U.S. signed an agreement with the Taliban to withdraw troops in 14 months if the Taliban uphold the terms of the agreement. As of February 2020, about 13,000 American troops were still in the country. The two sides agreed a gradual, conditions-based withdrawal over 14 months and the withdrawal agreement encompasses "all military forces of the United States, its allies, and Coalition partners, including all non-diplomatic civilian personnel, private security contractors, trainers, advisors, and supporting services personnel." In the first phase the U.S. will initially reduce its forces in Afghanistan by about 5,000 troops to 8,600 within 135 days of the U.S.–Taliban agreement. During the gradual withdrawal, the Taliban and the Afghan government would have to work out a more concrete power-sharing settlement. That time frame would give the government the cover of American military protection while negotiating. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the remaining U.S. troops will serve as leverage to ensure the Taliban lives up to its promises. If the Taliban fulfills its commitments to renounce al-Qaeda and begin intra-Afghan peace talks, the U.S. agreed to a complete withdrawal of all remaining American forces from Afghanistan within ten months.[36][37][38][39][40][41] The U.S. and its NATO allies have agreed to withdraw all troops within 14 months if the militants uphold the deal.[42]

On 1 March 2020, the peace agreement hit a major snag when President Ghani stated during a press conference that the Afghan government, which was not a party to the deal, would reject the deal's call for conducting a prisoner exchange with the Taliban by the proposed start of intra-Afghan negotiations on 10 March 2020, even stating that "[t]he government of Afghanistan has made no commitment to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners", that "an agreement that is signed behind closed doors will have basic problems in its implementation tomorrow", and that "[t]he release of prisoners is not the United States authority, but it is the authority of the government of Afghanistan."[43][44][45][46] Ghani also stated that any prisoner exchange "cannot be a prerequisite for talks" but must be a part of the negotiations.[42]

Some U.S. troops withdrew from Afghanistan on 9 March 2020 as required in the U.S.–Taliban peace agreement.[47][48] On 10 March 2020, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) rejected reports that the U.S. military had developed a plan to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan. General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., chief of CENTCOM, also stated that the plan was to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to 8,600 over a 14-month period.[49] The U.S. Army later confirmed that more troops would be sent to Afghanistan in the summer of 2020.[50] According to CENTCOM, the U.S. had reduced its Afghan troop numbers to 8,600 by 18 June 2020, in accordance with the February 2020 Taliban peace deal.[51] On 1 July 2020, following media reports of Taliban participation in an alleged Russian bounty program to target U.S. troops, the U.S. House Armed Services Committee voted for a National Defense Authorization Act amendment to set additional conditions to be met before President Trump could continue the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, including requiring an assessment on whether any country has offered incentives for the Taliban to attack U.S. and coalition troops along with prohibiting funding to reduce troop numbers to below 8,000 and again at 4,000 unless the administration certifies that doing so would not compromise American interests in Afghanistan.[52][53]

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meeting with Taliban delegation in Doha, Qatar, 12 September 2020

On 1 July 2020, the U.S. Senate rejected an attempt by Rand Paul's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which would have required the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Afghanistan within a year and brought an end to the 19-year war.[54] On 8 August, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said that the United States would reduce troop levels to below 5,000 by the end of November 2020.[55] In August 2020, U.S. intelligence officials assessed that the Iranian government offered bounties to the Taliban-linked Haqqani network to kill foreign servicemembers, including Americans, in Afghanistan. According to CNN, Donald Trump's administration has "never mentioned Iran's connection to the bombing, an omission current and former officials said was connected to the broader prioritization of the peace agreement and withdrawal from Afghanistan."[56]

The Pentagon announced on 17 November 2020 that it would reduce the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan from 4,500 to 2,500 by mid-January, i.e. by 15 January 2021, before President Trump's term of office expires on 20 January 2021.[57][58][59][60] U.S. National security adviser Robert C. O'Brien stated that the remaining troops in Afghanistan will defend American diplomats, the American embassy and other agencies of the U.S. government doing important work in Afghanistan, enable allies of the United States to do their work in Afghanistan and deter foes of America in Afghanistan.[60] The announcement was criticized by members of the United States Senate like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell or Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island.[57][58][60] NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned in a statement that "the price for leaving too soon or in an uncoordinated way could be very high."[59] Critics said that the Afghan withdrawal would not only undermine already fragile security in the region, but also stated that the troop reductions would not only hurt the ongoing peace talks between Taliban fighters and the government of Afghanistan, but also undermine delicate security in Afghanistan.[57][58][59] According to a senior defense official the conditions used to measure the drawdown are now based on whether national security would be threatened by a reduction in Afghanistan to 2,500 troops. "We do not feel that it is," said the official. The other condition was, "can we maintain a force posture in Afghanistan that permits us to carry out our mission with our allies and partners."[58] The announcement created anxiety in Afghanistan because U.S. troops are considered a hedge against the Taliban. There is a fear of a Taliban revitalization in Afghanistan. Atiqullah Amarkhel, a retired Afghan Army general and military analyst, told the New York Times that the Taliban "are stronger than in the past, and if the Americans leave and don't support and assist the Afghan Army they won’t resist long, and the Taliban will take over. This is what scares me the most."[59]

General Austin S. Miller alongside Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Afghanistan, March 2021

The Trump administration completed its reduction of forces to 2,500 troops in January 2021, the lowest number of American soldiers in Afghanistan since 2001.[61] As of January 2021, there are more than seven contractors for each U.S. military service member remaining in Afghanistan, amounting to over 18,000 contractors,[62] according to figures from U.S. Central Command.[62] In January 2021, then-incoming president Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the U.S. would review the peace agreement in order to effectively withdraw its remaining 2,500 soldiers from Afghanistan.[63] Biden supported a full withdrawal in 2014[64] but it was initially unclear as to whether he would uphold Trump's May 2021 withdrawal deadline.[65][66][67] In March 2021, news reports stated that President Biden was potentially considering keeping U.S. forces in Afghanistan until November 2021.[1][68] On 14 April 2021, Biden announced his intention to withdraw all regular U.S. troops by 11 September 2021, the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks and four months after the initially planned 1 May deadline.[1][7][69][70][71] The day before the announcement, Biden called former U.S. presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama regarding his decision to withdraw.[72] U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the decision was made in order to focus resources on China and the COVID-19 pandemic.[73] Following withdrawal, the U.S. is reportedly considering options for redeploying troops such as relocating to U.S. Navy vessels, countries in the Middle East, or Central Asian countries like Tajikistan.[70][74][75]

Aerial porters load a UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter unto a C-17 Globemaster III for departure from Bagram Airfield, 16 June 2021

On 18 February 2021, Secretary-General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance has not made a decision on how to proceed regarding the withdrawal.[76][77] Britain is expected to withdraw its remaining 750 Resolute Support Mission troops at the same time as the U.S.[78] According to the plan, NATO troops would also follow the same withdrawal timeline. The U.S. indicated that some troops (the exact number had not yet been decided) will remain in the country to provide diplomatic security,[70] and is unclear what will happen to the several hundred U.S. special operations forces working for the CIA on counter-terrorism missions.[70][79] New CIA Director William Joseph Burns told the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee on 14 April 2021 that "[t]here is a significant risk once the U.S. military and the coalition militaries withdraw" but added that the U.S. would retain "a suite of capabilities."[75] The administration of President Biden intends to use a broad array of foreign police tools stretching from military occupation to total abandonment.[75]

On 2 July 2021, Germany and Italy withdrew their troops from Afghanistan.[80] On the same day, American forces vacated Bagram Airfield. Afghan officials complained that the Americans had left without notifying the new Afghan commander until more than two hours after abandoning the base. As a result, the base was ransacked by looters before they could take control of the airfield.[81][82][83] Meanwhile, fighting raged between the Taliban and Afghan government forces, with analysts from Al Jazeera saying that the Taliban is "at the door of Kabul."[84] On 8 July 2021, President Biden announced that the official conclusion to the war in Afghanistan will be on 31 August 2021.[9] On 12 July 2021, Austin S. Miller stepped down from his post as commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.[85]

On 22 July 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 407–16 to pass the Allies Act, a bill that would improve and provide visas for Afghan interpreters who worked for American personnel during the war.[86][87]

Reactions

U.S. President Joe Biden meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chairman Abdullah Abdullah, 25 June 2021

The Biden administration's initial announcement of a full withdrawal of troops by 11 September 2021 generated both criticism and praise within the U.S.[70][75] Several senators criticized the withdrawal such as Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Jim Inhofe, Joni Ernst and Jeanne Shaheen.[88][89][90] Other senators, such as Rand Paul and Jack Reed supported the decision.[91][92] Former President Donald Trump praised Biden's decision to continue the withdrawal as "a wonderful and positive thing to do" but criticized Biden for choosing 11 September as the day of the withdrawal, suggesting that Biden should withdraw earlier, and that 11 September "should remain a day of reflection and remembrance honoring those great souls we lost."[93][94] Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that there were "consequences both foreseen and unintended of staying and of leaving"; one of these consequences, she expressed, was a potential collapse of the Afghan government, resulting in a takeover by the Taliban and a fresh civil war.[95] Former President George W. Bush, who oversaw the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, said the withdrawal made him "concerned" and that he believed it had the potential to "create a vacuum, and into that vacuum is likely to come people who treat women as second class citizens".[96] During an interview with Deutsche Welle on 14 July 2021, Bush reaffirmed his opposition to the troop withdrawal.[97]

At the 2021 Raisina Dialogue, Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Foreign Minister of Iran, said that the withdrawal was a welcome move, adding that foreign troops could not bring peace in Afghanistan.[98] The Diplomat reported on 17 April 2021 about the internal and external challenges for Afghanistan following the U.S. troop withdrawal from the perspective of Afghanistan's civil society.[99]

According to some media analysts, such as Alexander Nazaryan of Yahoo! News, the withdrawal was included among other actions that Biden broke with both Obama and Trump on, and was seen as maintaining the promise Biden made prior to becoming president that his term would not be "a third Obama term" because "President Trump has changed the landscape." Princeton professor Julian E. Zelizer claimed Biden "clearly learned a great deal from his time in the Obama presidency." Washington Post journalist Steven Levingston wrote, "Obama listened to military leaders who advised him that withdrawal would be a mistake. Biden, meanwhile, was the top administration official arguing for a much more limited role for American forces in Afghanistan. Later, Biden would go on to say that he could tell by Obama's 'body language' that he agreed with that assessment — even though he ultimately rejected it." Harvard historian James Kloppenberg stated, "only a fool would have been confident he knew all the answers [when it came to Afghanistan]. Obama was no fool."[100] The Washington Post editorial board was critical of the withdrawal in an article dated 2 July 2021, saying the U.S. was allowing its ally to fend for itself against the Taliban with insufficient resources, writing, "the descent from stalemate to defeat could be steep and grim. We wonder whether [Biden] has fully considered the consequences."[101] British Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace said the U.S. put Britain in a "very difficult position" following the withdrawal, though they subsequently followed suit.[102]

There are concerns about the rise of violence and unstable situations in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of U.S. forces. On 25 May 2021, Australia closed its Embassy in Kabul due to security concerns.[103] Belgium and France withdrew their diplomats.[104] The Chinese Embassy in Afghanistan issued a travel warning on 19 June, urging Chinese citizens to "leave Afghanistan as soon as possible" and demanding Chinese organizations to "take extra precautions and strengthen their emergency preparedness as the situation deteriorated" in the country.[105] The Chinese government dispatched a charter-flight operated by XiamenAir to evacuate 210 Chinese nationals from Kabul on 2 July.[106]

It was reported by the UN Security Council in July 2021 that despite the withdrawal and the Taliban agreement, members of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) are still present in as much as 15 Afghan provinces, and that they are operating under Taliban protection in Kandahar, Helmand and Nimroz provinces.[107][108]

Taliban response

Further information: 2021 Taliban offensive
A map of Afghanistan showing the Taliban offensive

Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said that no foreign forces, including military contractors, should remain after the withdrawal was complete, adding: "If they leave behind their forces against the Doha agreement then in that case it will be the decision of our leadership how we proceed."[109]

Soon after the withdrawal started, the Taliban launched an offensive against the Afghan government, quickly advancing in front of the collapsing Afghan Armed Forces. By 12 July 2021, the Taliban had seized 139 districts from the Afghan National Army; according to a U.S. intelligence report, the Afghan government would likely collapse within six months after NATO completes its withdrawal from the country.[110][111] According to The Washington Post, local militias in the north of the country have engaged in combat against the Taliban.[112] Footage taken on 16 June and released on 13 July showed Taliban gunmen executing 22 Afghan servicemen who had been attempting to surrender.[113]

President Joe Biden defended the withdrawal of U.S. troops, saying to trust "the capacity of the Afghan military, who is better trained, better equipped and ... more competent in terms of conducting war."[114] On 21 July, the highest-ranking U.S. military officer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, reported that half of all districts in Afghanistan were under Taliban control and that momentum was "sort of" on the side with the Taliban.[115]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Satia, Priya (27 April 2021). Felsenthal, Edward (ed.). "History's Warning for the U.S. Withdrawal From Afghanistan". Time. New York City. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  2. ↑ Qazi, Shereena (29 February 2020). "Afghanistan's Taliban, US sign agreement aimed at ending war". Al-Jazeera. Archived from the original on 12 September 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
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  4. ↑ Basu, Nayanima (12 September 2020). "India asserts Afghanistan's 'national sovereignty' as peace talks with Taliban start in Qatar". ThePrint. Archived from the original on 4 April 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
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  6. ↑ Network, Readables (21 March 2020). "U.S.-Taliban Deal: India should Chalk-out a New Strategy". Archived from the original on 3 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
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  8. ↑ "US to keep about 650 troops in Afghanistan after withdrawal". 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 2 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
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  16. ↑ Gordon, Michael R. (13 June 2017). "Trump Gives Mattis Authority to Send More Troops to Afghanistan". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
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  21. ↑ Mujib Mashal (24 August 2017). "U.S. Troop Increase in Afghanistan Is Underway, General Says". Archived from the original on 25 August 2017. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
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  30. ↑ Ryan Pickrell (9 December 2019). "Top US officials knew the Afghanistan war was unwinnable and 'lied' — even as costs rose to $1 trillion and 2,351 American troop's lives". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
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  34. ↑ Ward, Alex (21 September 2020). "Trump and Biden want you to believe they're more anti-war than they are". Vox.
  35. ↑ Peters, Cameron (25 April 2021). "The US military is finally withdrawing from Afghanistan". Vox.
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  41. ↑ Jennifer Hansler (29 February 2020). "US and Taliban sign historic agreement". CNN. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 "Afghan conflict: President Ashraf Ghani rejects Taliban prisoner release". BBC News. 1 March 2020. Archived from the original on 21 April 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
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