June 20, 2021
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden will meet at the White House with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, on June 25, the White House said on Sunday.
The meeting comes at a critical time when fighting between Afghan security forces and Taliban militants has surged, since Biden announced in April that all U.S. troops in Afghanistan would be withdrawn before Sept. 11, ending America’s longest war after nearly 20 years of conflict.
“The visit by President Ghani and Dr. Abdullah will highlight the enduring partnership between the United States and Afghanistan as the military drawdown continues,” the White House said in a statement.
It added that Washington was committed to supporting the Afghan people by providing diplomatic, economic and humanitarian assistance.
“The United States will remain deeply engaged with the Government of Afghanistan to ensure the country never again becomes a safe haven for terrorist groups who pose a threat to the U.S. homeland,” it said.
However, the Taliban has staged a months-long campaign to expand its influence across the country as the United States has begun withdrawing troops and closed some bases and handed them over to the Afghan government. The troop withdrawal started on May 1.
Since the United States announced plans in April to pull out all of troops, at least 30 districts have been seized by the Taliban.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk in Washington; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Matthew Lewis)
