The departure of the Americans spurred the Taliban offensive
Hundreds of soldiers of the Afghan government forces were forced to cross into the territory of Tajikistan, fleeing from the offensive of the militants of the Taliban movement (a terrorist organization banned in Russia).
Photo: AP
As the BBC reports with reference to the Tajik news agency “Khovar”, more than a thousand Afghan soldiers entered Tajikistan across the border on Monday night. According to available information, soldiers of the government army of Afghanistan crossed into the neighboring country in different places in groups of several dozen people.
The Tajik authorities have allowed the Afghan servicemen to stay in the country. President of the Republic Emomali Rahmon announced the mobilization of 20 thousand Tajik troops to strengthen the border in the Afghan section.
Despite the fact that the Taliban claim that they are not going to take actions against neighboring countries, there is growing concern in the Central Asian republics about what is happening in Afghanistan, where, according to some reports, about a third of the country’s territory has come under the control of the Taliban. Now the Taliban are active in the provinces of Badakhshan and Kunduz bordering Tajikistan. The militants have also launched an offensive in other parts of Afghanistan, according to Al Jazeera, last week they attacked the central city of Ghazni, located on the highway connecting Kabul with the southern province of Kandahar.
All this is happening against the background of the withdrawal of most of the American and NATO troops from Afghanistan. Moreover, leaving, which, for all its complex logistics, sometimes looks more like an escape. In any case, this is the impression that the situation with the largest Bagram air base left by the Americans is developing.
The Americans left Bagram airfield without even notifying the new Afghan commander of the base, who discovered their departure only after more than two hours, the Afghan military said.
“We heard some rumors that the Americans had left Bagram,” and finally, by 7:00 in the morning, we realized that it was confirmed that they had already left Bagram, ” General Mir Asadullah Kohistani, the new commander of the base, told the Associated Press. And another Afghan officer, commenting on the rapid departure of the Americans to CNN, compared it to the fact that an old friend left without saying goodbye.
According to the Afghan military, before the government forces could take control of the airfield, the looters managed to plunder the barracks and giant storage tents before they were driven away.
What will happen next when the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan is completed? This question interests many Afghans themselves, their neighbors, and the Americans who remain in the country. According to the Associated Press, citing sources at the US Embassy in Kabul, security assessments have often been conducted there in recent days. Currently in the diplomatic missionthere are 1,400 US citizens and about 4,000 local employees working inside a complex the size of a small but very well-fortified city located in the “green zone” of the Afghan capital. The evacuation of the embassy is not yet planned, but among the scenarios under consideration, apparently, this option is not excluded by the Americans.
Not only foreign diplomats, but also representatives of Western non-governmental organizations are very concerned about the possibility of the fall of Kabul under the attacks of the Taliban. The leadership of the Taliban even made a number of statements in which they assured aid groups and Afghans working for Western organizations that they had nothing to fear. But, as the Associated Press notes, this did not reassure the translators who worked for the US military. Some of them may be evacuated from Afghanistan, but moved to a third country while their immigration visas are processed in the United States.
Despite the promised withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan by September 11, hundreds of US troops will remain in the country, designed, in particular, to protect the diplomats who remain here. Nevertheless, the Taliban insist on the complete withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghan territory.
While conducting active military operations, the Taliban at the same time promise to submit a written peace proposal to the Afghan government soon (called August). Representatives of the Taliban declare that they are ready to resume long-stalled negotiations with the envoys of Kabul in Doha.