Outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the Biden administration did not do more to protect the 13 U.S. service members killed by ISIS-K suicide bombers during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan. expressed his remorse.
“Today we especially think of the 13 heroes we lost at Abbeygate, and we remember that we did and could not have done more to protect them. I deeply regret it,” Blinken said during testimony at the Capitol on Wednesday. “And to the families who are here today, I'm thinking of you and praying for you.”
Blinken, 62, was asked during a long-awaited appearance before the House Foreign Affairs Committee after months of wrangling with the committee to answer questions about the investigation into the bungled departure from Kabul in August 2021. , mixed a conciliatory tone with a defensive message.
He sought to shift some of the blame for the fiasco onto the circumstances he inherited, stressing that he “firmly believes” President Biden's decision to withdraw was the “right one.”
Blinken said the Doha agreement, negotiated under the Trump administration, was flawed and that any attempt to understand and learn from the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan must be properly grounded in what preceded it. “There is,” he emphasized.
“By January 2021, the Taliban were in their strongest military position since 9/11.” [and] “The number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan was the lowest since 2001,” he said, adding that Biden's other option was to send in thousands more troops with “some hope of reversing the stalemate.” I argued that it would be free.
“All of us, myself included, worked through that period and the previous 20 years to think about what we could have done differently.”
America's top diplomat has been feuding with the committee for six months over the course of the committee's nearly two-year investigation into the chaotic withdrawal, refusing two subpoena requests and giving a September 3 speech. He urged a resolution to hold the committee in contempt for its absence. Date of appearance.
That same month, the House Foreign Affairs Committee withdrew a scathing report on the hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan, released on a day that happened to pre-empt the 2024 presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and President-elect Donald Trump. It became.
Mr. Blinken was one of the few key officials the panel called to testify.
A major concern for Republicans on the panel was the tragic death of 13 U.S. service members in an ISIS-K suicide bombing at Abbey Gate on August 26, 2021.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who is term-limited and will be replaced by Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), did not approve Mr. Blinken's testimony last month after weeks of negotiations. Sealed.
Mr. McCall greeted Mr. Blinken, noting his “friendly” relationship, then moved into a harsh lecture on Mr. Blinken's obstruction and stewardship of the debacle in Afghanistan. The Texas lawmaker also said he had “admiration” for Biden's Cabinet, despite strong disagreements between the two sides on secession.
“I have to say I'm disappointed” in Blinken, McCaul bluntly said, reprimanding him for “appearing in court for the first time in violation of a Congressional subpoena.”
“While the alarm bells…were ringing loudly, you denied any imminent and dangerous threat to U.S. interests,” the chairman added. “That day was the deadliest day in the U.S. presence in Afghanistan since 2012. And the saddest thing is that it didn't have to happen.”
Ranking Member Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) defended the Biden administration and accused Republicans on the committee of politicizing the Afghanistan withdrawal.
“President Biden should have had better oversight of policy decisions made over four administrations instead of one, and not just during the months he was in office purely for political purposes,” Meeks said.
This was Mr. McCall's last hearing as chairman. He also teased that the committee is negotiating testimony with outgoing National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, which could be confidential.
“While I wish he had not delayed this important appearance until the end of his term as Secretary of State, it is important that House Republicans and the next administration listen to his testimony to ensure this never happens again.” I look forward to asking you the right questions,'' McCall said in a statement ahead of his testimony.
This article will be updated.
