An open question. While the United States must evacuate its last soldiers on August 31, the future of the airport in Kabul (Afghanistan), used to evacuate refugees since the Taliban seizure of power, is not yet known.
Turkey had positioned itself to secure and manage the particularly sensitive place. However, this position is made difficult by the demands of the Taliban. According to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the latter offer Ankara to operate the airport on condition that the armed group does not provide security. A risk that Turkey does not seem ready to take.
“Say you take care of security, but then what to tell the world if another bloodbath occurs there?” It is not easy, ”said the Turkish president, referring to the recent terrorist explosions that took place at Kabul airport. Over 100 people died, including 13 US servicemen.
The approximately 500 soldiers provided by Ankara have also started to leave the area, proof of the failure of the discussions. The Taliban indeed refuse any military presence on Afghan soil, and Turkey does not seem to be an exception.
An American “mechanism”?
At present, therefore, it would seem that only the armed group is able to take control of the infrastructure from September 1. However, no government has yet been announced, and it seems almost impossible to see the airport operate under these conditions, especially after the terrorist attack.
This is a problem for Western nations, which intended to continue welcoming refugees from Kabul. Especially since the Taliban would have promised to let the Afghans leave after August 31. But if no plane can land, or if no company agrees to land there, some people threatened by the new regime will not be able to escape as planned.
Jake Sullivan, national security adviser to Joe Biden, however promised on Fox News that a “mechanism” to help get the last nationals out of the country would be found. Whether refugees will have access to this process in the future remains to be seen.