criticism in the British Parliament
Report calls Afghanistan withdrawal “disaster and betrayal”
May 24, 2022, 1:19 p.m
It is remembered that British Prime Minister Johnson had dogs and cats flown out of Afghanistan. But that is just one point of criticism in a British Parliament report on the Hindu Kush withdrawal. He accuses the government of “lack of leadership” and “lack of responsibility”.
A British parliamentary report has severely criticized the withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan last summer. MEPs wrote in the report: “Carrying out our disengagement from Afghanistan has proved a disaster and a betrayal of our allies that will damage UK interests for years to come.”
After the USA decided to withdraw its troops, the armed forces of the other allies – including the Bundeswehr – also decided to evacuate. However, the rapid advance of the radical Islamic Taliban took the western powers by surprise, leaving tens of thousands of people, including some local workers, behind in the country despite a dramatic airlift from Kabul.
“Sadly, this has cost many people the chance to leave Afghanistan and has put lives at risk,” said Tory Conservative Party committee chairman Tom Tugendhat. The committee called on a responsible senior State Department official, Philip Barton, to resign.
“The British side in this tragedy reveals a lack of serious coordination, a lack of clear decisions, a lack of leadership and a lack of accountability,” Tugendhat said. He denounced “severe systemic failures at the heart of British foreign policy,” directly attacking his party colleague and then Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.
Criticism of evacuation of dogs and cats
Last year – shortly after the end of the evacuation mission – the then Secretary of State Dominic Raab was criticized for not breaking off his vacation during the crucial days of the mission. In a cabinet reshuffle, Raab was then transferred to the Ministry of Justice. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also explicitly mentioned in the committee report: MPs see signs that he may have played a decisive role in the controversial evacuation of dogs and cats from Kabul. The committee asked for an explanation for the events.
Johnson’s government also answered the questions of the parliamentary committee “at best intentionally evasive and often intentionally misleading”. “Parliament can only hold the government accountable if it can be confident that it will receive honest answers to its questions,” stressed MEPs.
The report urged the government to resume diplomatic relations with the Taliban, who rule Afghanistan, as soon as possible. “Attempts to completely isolate the new regime only harm the Afghan people and can leave a vacuum that China will fill,” the statement said.