WASHINGTON: United States President Joe Biden on Thursday (local time) said it is going to be hard to meet the May 1 deadline to pull out US troops from Afghanistan as per the deal made during the Donald Trump administration.
Speaking at his first press conference since taking office, Biden said that, “It is gonna be hard to meet the May 1 deadline. In terms of tactical reason….it is hard to get those troops out. We have been meeting with our allies, those who also have troops in Afghanistan. If we leave we will do it in a safe and orderly way. We are in consultations with our allies and partners on how to proceed.”
“It is not my intention to stay there for a long time. But the question is how and under what circumstances do we meet that agreement that was made by (former) President Trump,” Biden said when asked about exit of US troops from Afghanistan.
Lastly, Biden said, “We (US) will leave (Afghanistan), the question is when we will leave.”
Since coming to power the Biden administration has made it clear that it is not willing to let the Taliban have its way as the price for ending the war in Afghanistan amid reports of al Qaeda gaining strength in the country.
On February 29, 2020, the US and the Taliban movement signed a peace deal in Doha, Qatar, stipulating a gradual withdrawal of US troops as well as the beginning of intra-Afghan negotiations and prisoner exchanges.
The talks were delayed multiple times until the Afghan government and the Taliban managed to agree on the prisoner exchange process as reported by Sputnik.