Three weeks before the Taliban seizure of Kabul *, US President Joe Biden held a telephone conversation with his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani, during which he called for a change in military strategy to confront the militants, writes Reuters.
“During the last conversation between US President Joe Biden and his Afghan counterpart before the Taliban seized control of the country, the leaders discussed military aid, political strategy and messaging tactics, but neither Biden nor Ashraf Ghani seemed to be aware of the immediate danger and were not ready for it”, the agency writes.
According to Reuters, on July 23, the presidents spoke for about 14 minutes. The agency’s journalists reviewed the transcript of the telephone conversation and listened to the audio recordings to confirm the authenticity of the conversation.
The materials were provided on condition of anonymity by a source not authorized to distribute them.
“We will continue to provide close air support if we know what the plan is. If Afghan politicians hold a press conference together in support of the new military strategy, it will change the perception and way of acting in the current situation”, Biden said during a telephone conversation with Ghani.
In addition, the American leader noted that Washington intends to continue “a stubborn diplomatic, political, economic struggle so that the Afghan government not only survives, but also continues to grow.” According to Reuters experts, Biden’s words clearly showed that he did not expect a massive Taliban uprising* and collapse in 23 days.
In April, US President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of the military contingent from the territory of Afghanistan, after which the Taliban* militants began to consistently seize the territory of the republic. On August 15, President Ashraf Ghani left the presidential palace and left Afghanistan.
The country’s ambassador to Tajikistan, Muhammad Zohir Agbar, said in an interview with RIA Novosti that the Taliban* are planning to kill the leader of the Afghan Resistance Front, Ahmad Massoud, who operates in Panjshir.
*-Terrorist organization, banned in the Russian Federation.