Biden digs in with fervent defense of Afghanistan withdrawal

President Biden on Tuesday offered a full-throated defense of his decision to withdraw the U.S. military from Afghanistan, saying the 20-year war was no longer serving the national interest of the United States.

Biden said it was the “unanimous recommendation” of his national security team and military commanders to leave Afghanistan by the Aug. 31 deadline. He rejected assertions that the withdrawal date was arbitrary.

“Let me be clear: Leaving Aug. 31 is not due to an arbitrary deadline. It was designed to save American lives,” Biden said in lengthy prepared remarks from the State Dining Room of the White House. “I was not going to extend this forever war, and I was not extending a forever exit.”

Biden characterized the chaotic evacuation effort as an “extraordinary success,” noting that the U.S. military and coalition forces evacuated more than 120,000 civilians from Afghanistan. He acknowledged that between 100 and 200 American citizens remain in Afghanistan and said the U.S. would work to help Americans and at-risk Afghans who still want to leave get out of the country as part of the diplomatic mission.

“We no longer had a clear purpose in an open-ended mission in Afghanistan,” Biden said, his voice rising as he delivered his speech. “After 20 years of war in Afghanistan, I refused to send another generation of America’s sons and daughters to fight a war that should have ended long ago.”

Biden’s remarks came about 24 hours after the last U.S. troops departed Afghanistan, bringing an end to America’s longest war and capping weeks of harsh criticism of his administration’s execution of the withdrawal.

Biden has endured attacks from Republicans after saying earlier this month that the U.S. military would evacuate every American citizen who wanted to leave, even if that meant staying beyond the Aug. 31 deadline.