The virtual call is scheduled for 930am. This post is scheduled for 1030am. Will anything change by then? Will Biden listen? Will he be receptive? Will he be lucid?
Ministers have dismissed hopes that Joe Biden will extend the August 31 deadline for withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan as the UK, France and Germany prepare to make a last-ditch plea in G7 talks today.
Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel are set to push the case for keeping the evacuation operation in place longer with thousands of desperate people still flocking to Kabul airport.
However, Mr Biden is still defying international and domestic pressure to prolong the airlift, even though it means troops might have to start focusing on their own exit plan within 24 hours.
A call with Mr Johnson last night failed to make any progress, while the Taliban has warned of ‘consequences’ if there is an attempt to cling on.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace conceded this morning it is ‘unlikely’ the deadline will be extended, after the RAF extracted another 2,000 people in the past 24 hours.
‘I think it is unlikely. Not only because of what the Taliban has said but if you look at the public statements of President Biden I think it is unlikely,’ Mr Wallace said.
Remember when Biden and his supporters said that he was Mr. Experience and was a foreign policy wizard and would bring America back to the international community? I bet France, Germany, and the UK are wishing Trump was still around, because, for all his mean tweets and bombastic rhetoric, they knew they could depend on him doing everything to protect U.S. citizens and those of allies
Tory MP Tom Tugendhat – who served as an Army officer in Afghanistan – said all the UK could do was ‘ask the Americans if they’re willing to stand with us’.
He added: ‘If they’re not then we can’t secure the perimeter and we can’t manage air traffic control, so if the Americans decide to go now I’m afraid that is it. But we can ask.’
There’s no telling what Dementia Joe might do. Neither he nor his advisors know what they’re doing. They blew the operation, pulling out the military before the civilians. They’re lying and diverting all over the place, instead of owning the issue and fixing it. This is what we get
- 8 Months In, Biden’s Cascade of Failure
- Can the U.S. Recover From the Afghanistan Debacle?
- No One Wants Biden to Fail, But He’s Doing It Anyway
- Stop Pretending Biden Is Fit to Lead
- Biden’s Entire National Security Team Must Go
- The One Thing Keeping Joe Biden in Office
And
Afghan Fallout: Biden Blows Up His Entire Case For Being President
Fo r most of the past week, in the fires of the worst foreign policy crisis of his young administration, the president who won the White House on a promise of competence and compassion has had trouble demonstrating much of either.â€
That’s not us saying that. This is how the New York Times described the Afghanistan debacle, which is as sure a sign as any of how much trouble President Joe Biden is in right now. (snip)
In a July 2020 speech, Biden declared that his “foreign policy agenda will place America back at the head of the table, working with our allies and partners – to mobilize global action on global threats.â€
Is that so?
The Washington Post reports that U.S. allies are complaining “that they were not fully consulted on a policy decision that potentially puts their own national security interests at risk – in contravention of President Biden’s promises to recommit to global engagement†and that “many around the world are wondering whether they could rely on the United States to fulfill long-standing security commitments stretching from Europe to East Asia.â€
And now we await the fallout from the virtual meeting (will Joe make it on time?). Does he cut and run? Or help our allies?
Read: Leaders Of UK, France, And Germany Plan To Tell Biden Not To Cut And Run »