US Department of Defense: "No Review Conducted on Extending Afghanistan Deployment Deadline"

"Additional Negotiations Needed with Taliban"... Position That Extension of Troop Deployment Is Difficult
Biden: "US Troops Will Stay Until All Americans Are Evacuated"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The U.S. Department of Defense has once again firmly stated that the August deadline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan will not change. This directly refutes rumors of an extension of the withdrawal deadline, which arose as the evacuation of Americans remaining in Afghanistan and locals who cooperated with the U.S. military has been delayed. However, there are also predictions that the withdrawal deadline may eventually be extended due to ongoing pressure from President Joe Biden and the U.S. political sphere.

On the 19th (local time), John Kirby, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense, said at a press briefing, "So far, there has been no consideration to change the August 31 deadline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan," and emphasized, "We will focus on doing everything possible before the withdrawal deadline to evacuate as many people as possible from Afghanistan."

Spokesperson Kirby stated, "If a decision were made to change the withdrawal deadline, additional talks with the Taliban would certainly be necessary," but added, "However, at this point, it is hard to believe that additional talks will take place." He also explained, "Communication with the Taliban continues, and there is absolutely no hostile interaction between U.S. troops and the Taliban at Kabul Airport."

Earlier, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that 2,000 people were evacuated overseas from Kabul Airport within 24 hours, continuing from the previous day. This is far below the daily evacuation target of 9,000 set by the Department of Defense. It is estimated that about 10,000 U.S. nationals and 80,000 Afghan locals who cooperated with the U.S. military are still waiting to leave Afghanistan. Even with simple calculations, with about 10 days left until the withdrawal deadline and a daily evacuation of 2,000 people, it seems impossible to evacuate everyone before the deadline.

Pressure from the U.S. political sphere is also intensifying, leading to speculation that the Department of Defense may consider extending the withdrawal deadline. Earlier, in an interview with ABC News the previous day, President Biden was asked whether the U.S. military would withdraw if all Americans were not evacuated by the withdrawal deadline. He responded, "In that case, the U.S. military will stay until they have rescued everyone."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.