Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan says President Joe Biden faced “unfair criticism” over last month’s withdrawal from Afghanistan as he saw it “the most sensible thing to do” after two decades of war in the neighboring country now under Taliban control.
Khan spoke weeks after images of chaotic scenes at the Kabul airport – the departures point for US and international forces and civilians – resulted in criticism of the American planning for the August 31 pullout. Some of America’s closest allies abroad and Republican leaders in Washington faulted the Biden Administration for the chaos during the last days of withdrawal.
But the Pakistani leader, a longtime advocate of the non-military solution to the Afghan conflict, noted that the former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani had fled the country, as the Taliban arrived at the doors of Kabul, and the Afghan army had surrendered.
“How can you prepare for that?” Khan said during an interview with Russian channel RT.
“So, there was so much unfair criticism of President Biden, and what he did was the most sensible thing to do.”
Khan’s comments are important as he has been a critic of the US use of force in Afghanistan, and the US-Pakistan relations have not made any significant progress since President Biden took over.
Khan was asked about his relationship with Biden during the interview.
“Our security chiefs keep exchanging views about Afghanistan,” Khan said.
At the same time, Khan, whose country is anxiously waiting for international support for the Taliban rulers from fears of the fallout of any unrest or civil war on its western border, was not certain if the US was following a coherent approach to the Afghan situation.
“There will be far-reaching consequences in terms of the refugee problem, which Pakistan and Iran will feel more as they have taken more number of refugees,”
Meanwhile, Khan revealed after a regional conference that Islamabad has launched a dialogue with the Afghan Taliban on the country having an “inclusive” government.
He met with the leaders of Afghanistan’s neighbors, including China, Russia, Iran, and Tajikistan, on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
“After meetings in Dushanbe with leaders of Afghanistan’s neighbors, and especially a lengthy discussion with Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon, I have initiated a dialogue with the Taliban for an inclusive Afghan govt to include Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks,” Khan said in a series of tweets.
The Taliban, who are from the majority Pashtun population, have made Qari Fasihuddin, a Tajik, army chief but have not yet give representation to other minority communities and women.
