A U.S. Chinook evacuates embassy staff from Kabul<\/p>\n
America\u2019s former top general in the Middle East said Sunday he advised President Biden against withdrawing all U.S. troops from Afghanistan<\/a> last summer, and he said that the Pentagon made clear to the White House that a full withdrawal would almost surely lead to a rapid Taliban<\/a> takeover of the country.<\/p>\n In an interview with \u201cFox News Sunday,\u201d Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie<\/a>, the former chief of U.S. Central Command, said he<\/a> believes the Taliban<\/a> could\u2019ve been kept at bay and the U.S.-backed Afghan government could have remained in power had Mr. Biden decided instead to keep a small contingent of American troops in the country.<\/p>\n Gen. McKenzie<\/a>\u2018s interview comes just days before the one-year anniversary of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan<\/a>, which marked the end of the longest-running war in American history and paved the way for the extremist Taliban<\/a> to reclaim power<\/p>\n \u201cI advised against withdrawing, my recommendation and my opinion, and it remains so today, was we had the opportunity to remain in the country with a small force,\u201d said Gen. McKenzie<\/a>, who led CENTCOM during the chaotic American military pullout in August 2021.<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe that Kabul would fall if we pull out our troops. It was just a question of when Kabul would fall and we have been saying that really since the fall of the year,\u201d before the withdrawal, he<\/a> said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat had been a consistent position of Central Command, our subordinates in Afghanistan<\/a>, that if we leave, they\u2019re going to collapse. It\u2019s just a question of when they\u2019re going to collapse \u2026 This was not a particular surprise to us.\u201d<\/p>\n Gen. McKenzie<\/a> said he<\/a>\u2018s confident Mr. Biden saw those assessments, casting more doubt on why the president made public declarations last summer that he believed the Afghan government would survive and that the Taliban<\/a> wasn\u2019t capable of overrunning the country so quickly.<\/p>\n \u201cLook, I\u2019m confident that my assessments went up the chain of command. I\u2019m sure the president saw them. The president of [the] United States has to make decisions based on a variety of factors,\u201d Gen. McKenzie<\/a> said. \u201cMy input was certainly one of those factors and I appreciate the opportunity to have had that input, but the president is going to have to make decisions based on a much broader range of considerations.\u201d<\/p>\n The Pentagon has consistently said that Afghanistan<\/a>, despite the Taliban<\/a>\u2018s assurances to the contrary, remains home to Islamic terrorists, including those affiliated with al Qaeda and the Islamic State.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, a U.S. drone strike in Kabul killed al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri, fueling questions about whether the Taliban<\/a> is once again allowing al Qaeda to use Afghanistan<\/a> as a safe haven.<\/p>\n Asked whether that fact could eventually force American troops back to Afghanistan<\/a>, Gen. McKenzie<\/a> seemed to suggest that\u2019s a real possibility.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI know this \u2014 it is in the best long-term interest of the United States to not allow these centers of violent extremism to grow and expand in Afghanistan<\/a>. And I believe under the current Taliban<\/a> regime, that\u2019s probably what\u2019s going to happen,\u201d he<\/a> said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe last time I was looking at intelligence, that was a position we had,\u201d Gen. McKenzie<\/a> said. \u201cI follow it like everybody else does now, in the newspaper and other sources. But I see nothing to change that opinion that the threat is growing in Afghanistan<\/a> and it\u2019s merely a matter of time.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Source <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n .@JenGriffinFNC<\/a>: \u201cDo you think troops will have to be sent back to Afghanistan?\u201d <\/p>\n Retired Gen. McKenzie: \u201cThat\u2019s a difficult question\u2026the threat is growing in Afghanistan, and it's merely a matter of time.\u201d @FoxNewsSunday<\/a><\/p>\n — Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) August 28, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n