Original title: The fate of Afghanistan is turning.
China News Service, August 16 (Meng Xiangjun) On August 15, the situation in Afghanistan changed suddenly. Taliban armed groups entered the capital Kabul and occupied the presidential palace. President Ghani resigned and left the country. The Taliban announced that they took control of the country.
On the other side, many people rushed to the airport or border and left the country in a hurry. They are mainly diplomats from the United States, Britain, Germany and other countries stationed in Afghanistan, as well as Afghans who “can afford air tickets”.
In a long war spanning 20 years, is it unexpected or reasonable to usher in a turning point in this way?
[塔利班攻势惊人 超出美国预料]
Originally, according to US President Biden’s plan, US soldiers would withdraw from this devastated country before September 11, which he specifically selected for the US National Crisis Day.
Because after several months of retreat, the U.S. troop withdrawal has completed more than 95%, and there is still enough time.
It is also because a few days ago, US intelligence agencies were still predicting that the Afghan Taliban would encircle the capital Kabul within 30 days and “take over” the city within 90 days.
However, it wasn’t until the weekend that the Taliban had already occupied all the important places, and they were advancing as they approached the city of Kabul.
Data map: US troops stationed in Afghanistan.At that time, except Kabul, all major cities in Afghanistan, entry and exit ports, police stations, universities, prisons… were fully controlled by the Taliban.
It can be said that the strategic environment in Afghanistan has undergone a tremendous change.
Agence France-Presse quoted the Afghan people as saying that when they woke up, they found that the Taliban flag had been hung on the street.
The army was overwhelmed, and Kabul was shaped like an isolated island. Hundreds of people flocked to the bank, trying to withdraw their life savings, and “forced to stop” the self-service teller machine.
At the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan, a large number of people trying to leave gather. Since then, they will be displaced, and they can only look back at their suffering hometown for the last time before leaving.
[美国嘴硬：这不是“西贡时刻”重演]
The rapid changes in the situation caught the United States and its allies by surprise.
US military “Chinook” helicopters hovered over the US Embassy in Kabul to evacuate personnel; plumes of smoke that were suspected of being burned too late to take away “confidential elements” rose from above the embassy.
On the 15th, the Kabul Airport in the capital became the only way to leave the country.
A large number of American diplomats gathered here, and they will all leave within 72 hours. This is indeed consistent with previous reports by foreign media that the United States intends to “move” the embassy to the airport in order to evacuate as soon as possible.
Equally embarrassed are the “memorials” after the U.S. withdrawal. The former “Humvee” military vehicles, weapons and ammunition became outcasts, allowing Taliban personnel to “pick up a lot of equipment.”
American Fox News reported on the situation in Afghanistan and the U.S. troop withdrawal under the title “That’s it, it’s over.” Image source: Screenshot of Fox News website.In addition to the consistent rightist “hardcore” “Fox News” in the United States with the headline “That’s it”, “It’s over” to describe the United States‘ hasty departure, the leftist flagship CNN can’t help but issue it. The question of the soul is: “Is the U.S. withdrawal wrong?” The U.S. military base left only ruined walls after the U.S. retreat is regarded as evidence of the failure of the U.S. military operations in Afghanistan.
“Fox News” subsequently reported that after 20 years of “blood and tears” by the Americans, when the Taliban occupied Afghanistan, U.S. President Biden “passed the time” on vacation at Camp David, and Biden suffered as a result. A fierce attack from Republican lawmakers.
Republican Congressman Jim Jordan said, why is Biden on vacation instead of listening to the situation in Afghanistan in the White House? Jordan said that the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan was “embarrassing.”
Singapore’s “Lianhe Zaobao” reported that foreign social networks, media, and even the Republican leader of the US Senate, McConnell, have all begun to compare the withdrawal of US troops to a repetition of the chaotic “Saigon moment” of the US withdrawal from South Vietnam in 1975.
U.S. Secretary of State Blincol believes that to say that the United States is too shameless. He retorted: “This is not Saigon. When the United States went to Afghanistan 20 years ago, there was only one mission. That was to deal with those who attacked us in the September 11 incident. This mission has been completed.”
This has almost the same meaning as the words of US President Biden. Biden also stated more directly that “it has nothing to do with me,” and to the Afghan government: “If the Afghan army cannot or is unwilling to defend its own country, it will be of no avail for the U.S. military to stay for another year or five.”
Data map: US President Biden.[美国重金养的军队为啥“败”得这么快？]
According to Biden, the United States has invested nearly 1 trillion U.S. dollars to train more than 300,000 Afghan soldiers and police. This army, trained by the world‘s number one country, is also equipped with the most advanced military equipment. It has to fight a little bit no matter what, and it will fight the Taliban for three hundred rounds.
However, the fact is that the Afghan government forces are not as good as the United States imagined. Under the blessing of the “plug-in” of the US airstrikes, they were still defeated. In some areas, the Taliban even won without a fight.
When entering Jalalabad, the fifth largest city in Afghanistan, and Kabul, the capital, according to the Taliban, they “have not encountered too much resistance” and the local government forces themselves surrendered, and some even “leave their duties without authorization.”
In this regard, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at the China Foreign Affairs University, pointed out in an interview with Chinanews that the Afghan army trained by the United States has proved to be useless. The root cause of the rapid changes in the situation is the popular support.
He also pointed out that the Taliban themselves are organized and disciplined. They can restore order and maintain stability in Afghanistan, and they have also won some popular support.
The Taliban had previously announced that they would not use force to capture Kabul, nor would they seek retaliation, and would ensure the safety of all civilian and military officials.
On August 15, 2021, the Afghan police inspected vehicles at Kabul Airport.[阿富汗命运的重大转折]
On the 15th, Taliban representatives met with President Ghani at the Afghan Presidential Palace for negotiations. Ghani later agreed to resign, and the news stated that he left Afghanistan immediately.
According to the latest news, the Taliban commander stated that they have taken control of the Afghan Presidential Palace. Its officials stated that they will announce the establishment of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” at the Afghan Presidential Palace.
2021 is a year with special meaning for Afghanistan. Hedong in 20 years and Hexi in 20 years. If 20 years ago, the American invasion made Afghanistan “fate by a thread”, now, when the pressure from external forces fades, Afghanistan’s national future has once again ushered in a major turning point.
The top priority for Afghanistan is to embark on the road of political negotiations as soon as possible, achieve a peaceful transition, and maintain long-term stability.
Afghanistan, located in south-central Asia, is an important communication channel for various civilizations in Asia. Its geopolitical status is very important. Many empires in history have set this area as a target for expansion. However, multiple historical fragments over the past 2000 years show that the conquerors of the empire seem to have encountered setbacks here. Because of this, Afghanistan was dubbed the “Imperial Cemetery”.
Who smashed into the sand here, and whose past was “buried”? What kind of tomorrow Afghanistan will head, can only be determined by itself. (Finish)
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