The House Foreign Affairs Committee’s investigation into the Biden administration’s withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan is advancing, despite receiving little public attention, according to the Washington Examiner.
Quoted by the Washington Examiner, an aide to the committee reported that over the past six months, investigators have conducted more than 15 transcribed interviews with current and former administration officials. Interviewees included Brian McKeon, former Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources; Ambassador Ross Wilson, ex-chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul; Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, former Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation; Ned Price, the prior State Department spokesperson and now a senior adviser to Secretary Antony Blinken; and Suzy George, Blinken’s chief of staff.
“This was entirely predictable,” the aide commented, criticizing the State Department’s approach following the Biden administration’s assumption of office in January 2021. “There was a Kabul-centric focus on Afghan security and a neglect of the Taliban’s advances across Afghanistan.”
The aide added that while the State Department has recently been more cooperative, providing documents and interviews, the White House has resisted the committee’s requests for interviews.
The U.S. completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan on August 31, 2021. Critics argue that the Taliban’s return to power and the fall of the previous Afghan government were consequences of this withdrawal.
Political analyst Akhtar Rasakh noted, “The U.S. sacrificed the Afghan republic for its intelligence goals when it established a Taliban office in Qatar.”
Jerry Dunleavy, an author and U.S. House of Representatives staff member, attributed the situation to President Joe Biden’s decisions. “This was President Biden from start to finish. Questions about his age and fitness for the job aside, the withdrawal decision was his,” Dunleavy stated.
The House Foreign Relations Committee continues its investigation into the U.S. troop withdrawal and the terrorist attack that occurred during the final stages.
