RASC News Agency: Donald Trump, the former President of the United States and current presidential candidate, described the Taliban as “good fighters” in an interview with Sean Ryan, which was published on Monday. He also expressed gratitude for the cooperation of Abdul Ghani Baradar and the Taliban in refraining from attacking American soldiers during the final 18 months of his administration. When questioned about Michael McCaul, the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and his apparent “neglect” regarding a request for Ahmad Massoud to speak before Congress, Trump deftly avoided the topic. The former U.S. President expressed surprise at McCaul being characterized as a good man.
Nearly 300,000 individuals have signed an online petition urging Congress to allow Ahmad Massoud to deliver a speech. This petition, initiated by Sean Ryan, a former U.S. military officer, criticizes “financial aid to the Taliban” and calls for its immediate cessation. Critics in both the United States and Afghanistan argue that the millions of dollars in American humanitarian aid to Afghanistan are indirectly supporting the Taliban, and they have voiced strong opposition to its continuation. During the interview with Trump, Sean Ryan criticized McCaul for disregarding the online petition and failing to invite Ahmad Massoud to speak before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Ryan sought Trump’s opinion on McCaul’s decision to overlook this request.
Trump responded by saying, “Honestly, I was surprised when you said McCaul is a good man.” In the same interview, which aired on Monday, Trump reiterated his description of the Taliban as “good fighters” and expressed his appreciation for Abdul Ghani Baradar and the Taliban for not targeting American soldiers during the final 18 months of his presidency. On Monday, Trump also delivered a speech at a ceremony commemorating the 13 U.S. Marines who were killed at Kabul airport in August 2021. He laid the blame for the “humiliating” withdrawal from Afghanistan on his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, accusing both Harris and Biden of eroding America’s global credibility. Trump vowed that, should he win the upcoming election, he would dismiss all those responsible for the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan on his first day in office.
Throughout his campaign, Trump has consistently criticized the chaotic scenes at Kabul airport during the U.S. military’s withdrawal. Speaking at a memorial event for the fallen soldiers at the National Guard Association in Detroit, Trump declared, “We hope voters will fire Kamala and Joe on November 5. When I return to the presidency… I will have the resignation of every senior official involved in the Afghanistan disaster on my desk by Inauguration Day.”
On August 26, 2021, ISIS carried out a suicide bombing at Kabul airport, resulting in the deaths of 13 American soldiers and 170 Afghanistani civilians. In his interview with Sean Ryan, Trump called the U.S. withdrawal from Bagram Air Base a significant error, describing Bagram as one of the world’s largest military installations, “just an hour away from China’s nuclear weapons facility.” He criticized the Biden administration for abandoning not only military equipment but also service animals at Bagram.
Trump reiterated that the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan was inevitable but stressed, “I wanted to exit with strength and dignity.” He asserted that, had he been in the White House, the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, and the Russia-Ukraine war would not have occurred. However, opponents of the Taliban and Afghanistani analysts believe that without American financial and political support for the Taliban regime, the Taliban would not have survived even a year in Afghanistan. The U.S. not only provided them with financial resources but also prevented their opponents from taking armed action against the Taliban regime.
