11:11 22/08/2021
Tony Blair, former British Prime Minister, who led troops to war in Afghanistan in 2001, has considered the West's military withdrawal from this country as "dangerous" and "unnecessary".
Blair said on August 21 that Russia, China and Iran would "benefit" from the West's military withdrawal after 21 years of war and terrorist attacks.
Blair made the remarks in a statement posted on his Tony Blair Foundation for Global Change website.
"Abandoning Afghanistan and its people is tragic, dangerous, unnecessary and is neither in their interests nor in ours", he estimated in the first public comments about the crisis, since the Taliban took power and overthrew the Government supported by the West.
He added that "the question to be asked by allies, but also by enemies is 'has the West lost its strategic readiness?'"
"As the leader of our country, when we made the decision to join the United States in removing the Taliban from power - and who saw the high hopes for what could be achieved for the people and the world - I know better than most. how difficult are the decisions of leaders and how easy it is to be criticized and how difficult it is to be constructive".
He appealed to the West "to evacuate and shelter those for whom he is responsible - those Afghans who have helped us, stayed close to us and have the right to ask us to stay close to them".
Senior Taliban leadership is reported to have met in Kabul on August 21 to discuss the next government after the Islamist group's return to power.
The Taliban have promised a "different" leadership compared to the last period they were in power in 1996-2001, when they ruled through a strict interpretation of Islamic law.
The Taliban claimed victory on August 15 after taking control of the capital, Kabul, after nearly 20 years of ending the military presence of US-led forces.
The government has fallen and President Ashraf Ghani has fled the country.
The Taliban have gained control of Afghanistan a few days before the deadline, August 31, for the withdrawal of international forces from this country.
US-led forces ousted the Taliban from power in October 2001.
The Taliban were then harboring Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the September 11 attacks in the United States that year.
US President Joe Biden has said the US withdrawal is now reasonable, as US forces are assured that Afghanistan will no longer become a base for foreign jihadists to carry out plots against the West. /REL
Source of information @TvKlan: Read more at: www.botasot.al
