G7 countries are pushing for an extension of the US presence in Afghanistan
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G7 leaders tried to persuade Joe Biden to extend the US military presence in Afghanistan during Tuesday's video summit, the Associated Press reports. There are growing concerns that states will not be able to evacuate their citizens and Afghan collaborators by the end of the month.
The entire meeting was supposed to last no more than an hour. In addition to the leaders of the USA, Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, and Japan, the meeting was also attended by an EU delegation.
The American president is reluctant to prolong the evacuation because he does not want to irritate the Taliban and risk increasing violence on their part. The Taliban does not want to agree that the evacuation of foreign citizens and their associates should take longer than the end of the month.
Meanwhile, Johnson said the G7 nations have worked out a plan to reach an agreement with militants to persuade them to ensure the safety of those who are allowed to evacuate, even after September 31. There was consensus among the leaders about these intentions, the British Prime Minister said. In his opinion, aid funds for Afghanistan are an important bargaining chip, which can be withheld if cooperation is not satisfactory.
