1 00:00:00,640 --> 00:00:02,870 today , I was briefed by our senior 2 00:00:02,870 --> 00:00:05,780 military and national security leaders 3 00:00:05,780 --> 00:00:08,058 on the status of the drawdown of U . S . 4 00:00:08,058 --> 00:00:10,391 Forces and allied forces in Afghanistan . 5 00:00:11,340 --> 00:00:13,507 When I announced our drawdown in april 6 00:00:13,507 --> 00:00:16,860 I said we would be out by september and 7 00:00:16,860 --> 00:00:18,916 we're on track to meet that target . 8 00:00:18,916 --> 00:00:21,440 Excuse me , Our military mission 9 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:24,760 Afghanistan will conclude on August 31 10 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:27,870 the drawdown of proceeding in a secure 11 00:00:27,870 --> 00:00:30,220 and orderly way , prioritizing the 12 00:00:30,220 --> 00:00:32,331 safety of our troops as they depart . 13 00:00:32,740 --> 00:00:34,962 Our military commanders advised me that 14 00:00:34,962 --> 00:00:37,129 once I made the decision and the war , 15 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:39,610 we needed to move swiftly to conduct 16 00:00:39,610 --> 00:00:42,330 the main elements of the drawdown . And 17 00:00:42,330 --> 00:00:46,060 in this context , speed is safety . And 18 00:00:46,070 --> 00:00:48,014 thanks to the way in which we have 19 00:00:48,014 --> 00:00:50,740 managed a withdrawal , no one no one U . 20 00:00:50,740 --> 00:00:53,890 S . Forces or any forces have have been 21 00:00:53,890 --> 00:00:56,160 lost conducting our drawdown 22 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:58,271 differently would have certainly come 23 00:00:58,271 --> 00:01:00,510 with a increased risk of safety to our 24 00:01:00,510 --> 00:01:03,720 personnel . To me those risks were 25 00:01:03,720 --> 00:01:07,250 unacceptable . There was never any 26 00:01:07,250 --> 00:01:09,750 doubt that our military performed this 27 00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:12,540 task efficiently and with the highest 28 00:01:12,540 --> 00:01:14,820 level of professionalism , that's what 29 00:01:14,820 --> 00:01:17,370 they do . And the same is true of our 30 00:01:17,370 --> 00:01:19,259 NATO allies and partners who have 31 00:01:19,259 --> 00:01:21,490 supported we are supporting and 32 00:01:21,500 --> 00:01:23,870 supporting us as well as they conclude 33 00:01:23,870 --> 00:01:26,300 their retrograde . I want to be clear , 34 00:01:26,310 --> 00:01:28,088 the U . S . Military mission in 35 00:01:28,088 --> 00:01:30,088 Afghanistan continues to the end of 36 00:01:30,088 --> 00:01:32,830 august we remain , we retained 37 00:01:32,830 --> 00:01:35,450 personnel and capacities in the country 38 00:01:35,460 --> 00:01:37,960 and we maintain some authority to 39 00:01:37,970 --> 00:01:39,970 assume the the same authority under 40 00:01:39,970 --> 00:01:41,970 which we've been operating for some 41 00:01:41,970 --> 00:01:44,590 time . As I said in april the United 42 00:01:44,590 --> 00:01:47,240 States did what we went to do in 43 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,890 Afghanistan To get the terrorists who 44 00:01:49,890 --> 00:01:52,970 attacked us on 9 11 and deliver justice 45 00:01:52,970 --> 00:01:55,690 to Osama bin laden and to degrade the 46 00:01:55,690 --> 00:01:57,880 terrorist threat to keep Afghanistan 47 00:01:57,880 --> 00:02:00,720 from becoming a base from which attacks 48 00:02:00,720 --> 00:02:02,831 could be continued against the United 49 00:02:02,831 --> 00:02:06,020 States . We achieved those objectives . 50 00:02:06,030 --> 00:02:08,990 That's why we went . we did not go to 51 00:02:08,990 --> 00:02:12,500 Afghanistan to nation build and it's 52 00:02:12,500 --> 00:02:14,750 the right and the responsibility of 53 00:02:14,750 --> 00:02:17,270 Afghan people alone to decide their 54 00:02:17,270 --> 00:02:19,390 future and how they want to run their 55 00:02:19,390 --> 00:02:22,860 country Together with our NATO allies 56 00:02:22,860 --> 00:02:24,804 and partners . We have trained and 57 00:02:24,804 --> 00:02:28,640 equipped over three , nearly 300,000 58 00:02:28,650 --> 00:02:30,983 current serving members of the military , 59 00:02:30,983 --> 00:02:33,030 the Afghan security force and many 60 00:02:33,030 --> 00:02:35,252 beyond that . You are no longer serving 61 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:38,050 after that . Hundreds of thousands more 62 00:02:38,060 --> 00:02:40,116 Afghan National Defence and Security 63 00:02:40,116 --> 00:02:42,330 forces trained over the last two 64 00:02:42,330 --> 00:02:44,750 decades . We provided our Afghan 65 00:02:44,750 --> 00:02:46,806 partners with all the tools , let me 66 00:02:46,806 --> 00:02:48,820 emphasize all the tools training 67 00:02:48,820 --> 00:02:51,790 equipment of any modern military . We 68 00:02:51,790 --> 00:02:54,000 provided advanced weaponry and we're 69 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:56,056 going to continue to provide funding 70 00:02:56,056 --> 00:02:58,600 and equipment and will ensure they have 71 00:02:58,600 --> 00:03:00,544 the capacity to maintain their air 72 00:03:00,544 --> 00:03:03,800 force . But most critically , as I 73 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:05,911 stressed to my meeting just two weeks 74 00:03:05,911 --> 00:03:08,022 ago with President Ghani and Chairman 75 00:03:08,022 --> 00:03:10,830 Abdullah Afghan leaders have to come 76 00:03:10,830 --> 00:03:13,680 together and drive toward the future 77 00:03:13,940 --> 00:03:15,996 that the Afghan people want and they 78 00:03:15,996 --> 00:03:18,700 deserve . In our meeting , I also 79 00:03:18,700 --> 00:03:21,340 assured Ghani that US support for the 80 00:03:21,340 --> 00:03:24,800 people of Afghanistan will endure . We 81 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:26,911 will continue to provide civilian and 82 00:03:26,911 --> 00:03:29,170 humanitarian assistance , including 83 00:03:29,170 --> 00:03:31,226 speaking out for the rights of women 84 00:03:31,226 --> 00:03:33,560 and girls . I intend to maintain our 85 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:35,650 diplomatic presidents in Afghanistan 86 00:03:35,650 --> 00:03:37,950 and we're coordinating closely with our 87 00:03:37,950 --> 00:03:39,894 international partners in order to 88 00:03:39,894 --> 00:03:41,950 continue to secure the international 89 00:03:41,950 --> 00:03:44,117 airport and we're going to engage in a 90 00:03:44,117 --> 00:03:47,380 determined diplomacy to pursue peace 91 00:03:47,390 --> 00:03:49,560 and a peace agreement that will end 92 00:03:49,560 --> 00:03:51,930 this senseless violence . I've asked 93 00:03:51,930 --> 00:03:53,874 Secretary of State Blinken and our 94 00:03:53,874 --> 00:03:56,041 special representative for Afghanistan 95 00:03:56,041 --> 00:03:58,490 reconciliation to work vigorously with 96 00:03:58,490 --> 00:04:00,940 the parties in Afghanistan as well as 97 00:04:00,940 --> 00:04:02,662 the regional and international 98 00:04:02,662 --> 00:04:04,930 stakeholders , to support a negotiated 99 00:04:04,930 --> 00:04:08,510 solution . To be clear , to be clear , 100 00:04:08,520 --> 00:04:10,687 countries in the region having a sense 101 00:04:10,687 --> 00:04:12,464 of role to play in supporting a 102 00:04:12,464 --> 00:04:14,576 peaceful settlement . We'll work with 103 00:04:14,576 --> 00:04:16,980 them and they should help step up their 104 00:04:16,980 --> 00:04:18,840 efforts as well . We're going to 105 00:04:18,840 --> 00:04:21,010 continue to work for the release of 106 00:04:21,010 --> 00:04:24,140 detained americans , including uh Mark 107 00:04:24,150 --> 00:04:25,510 uh 108 00:04:25,690 --> 00:04:29,450 fabrics . I want to pronounce the 109 00:04:29,450 --> 00:04:32,030 name correctly , I miss I misspoke so 110 00:04:32,030 --> 00:04:34,363 that he can return to his family safely . 111 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:36,696 We're also going to continue to make 112 00:04:36,696 --> 00:04:39,050 sure that we take on the Afghan 113 00:04:39,050 --> 00:04:41,810 nationals who work side by side with US 114 00:04:41,810 --> 00:04:43,810 forces , including interpreters and 115 00:04:43,810 --> 00:04:45,977 translators . Since we're no longer to 116 00:04:45,977 --> 00:04:47,921 have military there . After this , 117 00:04:47,921 --> 00:04:50,143 we're not gonna need them and they have 118 00:04:50,143 --> 00:04:52,310 no jobs were also going to be vital to 119 00:04:52,310 --> 00:04:54,532 our efforts . So they they've been very 120 00:04:54,532 --> 00:04:56,532 vital and so their families are not 121 00:04:56,532 --> 00:04:58,421 exposed to danger as well . We've 122 00:04:58,421 --> 00:05:00,580 already dramatically accelerated the 123 00:05:00,580 --> 00:05:03,570 procedure uh time for special immigrant 124 00:05:03,570 --> 00:05:05,459 visas to bring them to the United 125 00:05:05,459 --> 00:05:07,770 States . Since I was inaugurated in 126 00:05:07,770 --> 00:05:10,180 January 20 , we've already approved 127 00:05:10,180 --> 00:05:13,360 2500 special immigrant visas to come to 128 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:15,990 the United States . Up to now , fewer 129 00:05:15,990 --> 00:05:18,212 than half have exercised their right to 130 00:05:18,212 --> 00:05:20,379 do that . Half have gotten an aircraft 131 00:05:20,379 --> 00:05:22,890 and commercial flights income and the 132 00:05:22,890 --> 00:05:25,230 other half believe they want to stay at 133 00:05:25,230 --> 00:05:27,680 least thus far , working closely with 134 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:29,736 Congress to change the authorization 135 00:05:29,736 --> 00:05:31,847 legislation so that we can streamline 136 00:05:31,847 --> 00:05:33,902 the process of approving those visas 137 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:36,040 and those who have stood up for the 138 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,560 operation to physically relocate 139 00:05:38,570 --> 00:05:40,792 thousands of afghans and their families 140 00:05:40,792 --> 00:05:42,792 before the U . S . Military mission 141 00:05:42,792 --> 00:05:45,014 concludes so that if they choose , they 142 00:05:45,014 --> 00:05:47,800 can wait safely outside of Afghanistan 143 00:05:47,810 --> 00:05:49,880 while their U . S . Visas are being 144 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:52,790 processed . The operation has 145 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:55,690 identified us facilities outside the 146 00:05:55,690 --> 00:05:57,857 Continental United States , as well as 147 00:05:57,857 --> 00:06:00,330 in third countries to host our afghan 148 00:06:00,330 --> 00:06:02,660 allies that they choose they so choose . 149 00:06:03,240 --> 00:06:05,296 And this starting this month , we're 150 00:06:05,296 --> 00:06:07,240 going to begin to relocate . We're 151 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:09,840 going to begin relocation flights for 152 00:06:09,840 --> 00:06:12,730 Afghanistan ? S ivy applicants , uh and 153 00:06:12,730 --> 00:06:15,610 their families who choose to leave . We 154 00:06:15,610 --> 00:06:17,777 have a point person in the White House 155 00:06:17,777 --> 00:06:19,832 and at the State Department led Task 156 00:06:19,832 --> 00:06:21,999 Force coordinating all these efforts . 157 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:25,740 But our message to those women and men 158 00:06:25,740 --> 00:06:28,450 is clear , there is a home for you in 159 00:06:28,450 --> 00:06:31,160 the United States . If you so choose , 160 00:06:31,270 --> 00:06:33,450 we will stand with you just as you 161 00:06:33,450 --> 00:06:36,130 stood with us . When I made the 162 00:06:36,130 --> 00:06:38,186 decision to end the U . S . Military 163 00:06:38,186 --> 00:06:40,710 involvement , Afghanistan , I judged 164 00:06:40,710 --> 00:06:42,488 that it was not in the national 165 00:06:42,488 --> 00:06:44,543 interest in United States America to 166 00:06:44,543 --> 00:06:46,877 continue fighting this war indefinitely . 167 00:06:47,580 --> 00:06:50,360 I made the decision with clear eyes and 168 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:52,416 I'm briefed daily on the battlefield 169 00:06:52,416 --> 00:06:54,780 updates . But for those who have argued 170 00:06:54,780 --> 00:06:56,760 that we should stay just six more 171 00:06:56,760 --> 00:06:59,150 months or just one more year , I asked 172 00:06:59,150 --> 00:07:01,317 them to consider the lessons of recent 173 00:07:01,317 --> 00:07:05,100 history . In 2011 , the NATO 174 00:07:05,100 --> 00:07:07,044 allies and partners agreed that we 175 00:07:07,044 --> 00:07:10,360 would end our combat mission in 2014 176 00:07:11,140 --> 00:07:13,830 In 2014 . Some argued one more year . 177 00:07:13,840 --> 00:07:16,360 So we kept fighting . We kept taking 178 00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:20,120 casualties in 2015 the same and on and 179 00:07:20,120 --> 00:07:23,030 on . Nearly 20 years of experience has 180 00:07:23,030 --> 00:07:25,570 shown us that the current security 181 00:07:25,570 --> 00:07:28,420 situation only confirms that just one 182 00:07:28,420 --> 00:07:30,642 more year of fighting in Afghanistan is 183 00:07:30,642 --> 00:07:33,220 not a solution but a recipe for being 184 00:07:33,220 --> 00:07:35,940 there indefinitely . It's up to the 185 00:07:35,940 --> 00:07:38,107 afghans to make the decision about the 186 00:07:38,107 --> 00:07:40,580 future of their country . Others are 187 00:07:40,580 --> 00:07:43,430 more direct . Their argument is that we 188 00:07:43,430 --> 00:07:45,152 should stay with the afghan in 189 00:07:45,152 --> 00:07:47,950 Afghanistan indefinitely . And doing so . 190 00:07:47,950 --> 00:07:50,610 They point to the fact that we uh , we 191 00:07:50,610 --> 00:07:53,160 have not taken losses in this last year . 192 00:07:53,540 --> 00:07:55,540 So they claim that the cost of just 193 00:07:55,540 --> 00:07:57,762 maintaining the status quo is minimal , 194 00:07:58,240 --> 00:08:00,880 but that ignores the reality and the 195 00:08:00,880 --> 00:08:02,880 facts that already presented on the 196 00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:04,769 ground in Afghanistan when I took 197 00:08:04,769 --> 00:08:07,290 office , The Taliban was that the 198 00:08:07,290 --> 00:08:09,790 strongest is that his strongest 199 00:08:09,790 --> 00:08:13,360 militarily since 2001 . The number of 200 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:15,249 US forces in Afghanistan had been 201 00:08:15,249 --> 00:08:17,250 reduced to a bare minimum . And the 202 00:08:17,250 --> 00:08:19,361 United States and last administration 203 00:08:19,361 --> 00:08:21,770 made an agreement that they with the 204 00:08:21,770 --> 00:08:23,826 Taliban and remove all our forces by 205 00:08:23,826 --> 00:08:26,450 May one of this past of this year . 206 00:08:27,300 --> 00:08:29,380 That's what I inherited . That 207 00:08:29,380 --> 00:08:31,436 agreement was the reason the Taliban 208 00:08:31,436 --> 00:08:33,436 had ceased major attacks against US 209 00:08:33,436 --> 00:08:36,110 forces . If in april id instead 210 00:08:36,110 --> 00:08:38,166 announced that the United States was 211 00:08:38,166 --> 00:08:40,120 going to back . Going back on that 212 00:08:40,120 --> 00:08:41,620 agreement made by the last 213 00:08:41,620 --> 00:08:43,787 administration , the United States and 214 00:08:43,787 --> 00:08:45,398 allied forces will remain in 215 00:08:45,398 --> 00:08:47,287 Afghanistan . For the foreseeable 216 00:08:47,287 --> 00:08:49,560 future . The Taliban would have again 217 00:08:49,560 --> 00:08:52,640 begun to target our forces . The status 218 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:55,530 quo was not an option , stain would 219 00:08:55,530 --> 00:08:57,697 have met us troops taking casualties . 220 00:08:58,140 --> 00:09:00,610 American men and women back in the 221 00:09:00,610 --> 00:09:03,690 middle of a civil war and we would run 222 00:09:03,690 --> 00:09:05,970 the risk of having to send more troops 223 00:09:05,970 --> 00:09:07,970 back into Afghanistan to defend our 224 00:09:07,970 --> 00:09:10,248 remaining troops . Once that agreement , 225 00:09:10,248 --> 00:09:12,770 the Taliban had been made staying with 226 00:09:12,770 --> 00:09:14,880 a bare minimum force was no longer 227 00:09:14,880 --> 00:09:18,610 possible . So let me ask those who want 228 00:09:18,610 --> 00:09:21,960 us to stay , how many more , how many 229 00:09:21,960 --> 00:09:24,016 thousands more americans , daughters 230 00:09:24,016 --> 00:09:26,150 and sons , are you willing to risk ? 231 00:09:26,740 --> 00:09:28,960 How long would you have them stay 232 00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:31,273 Already ? We have members of our 233 00:09:31,273 --> 00:09:33,320 military whose parents fought in 234 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:36,190 Afghanistan 20 years ago . Would you 235 00:09:36,190 --> 00:09:37,857 send their Children and their 236 00:09:37,857 --> 00:09:40,220 grandchildren as well ? Would you send 237 00:09:40,220 --> 00:09:43,870 your own son or daughter ? After 20 238 00:09:43,870 --> 00:09:46,790 years , a trillion dollars spent 239 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:48,860 training and equipping hundreds of 240 00:09:48,860 --> 00:09:51,010 thousands of afghan National Security 241 00:09:51,020 --> 00:09:52,360 and Defence Forces . 242 00:09:53,340 --> 00:09:56,420 2448 Americans 243 00:09:56,720 --> 00:10:00,690 killed 20722 244 00:10:00,690 --> 00:10:03,880 more wounded and untold thousands . 245 00:10:03,880 --> 00:10:06,310 Coming home with unseen trauma to the 246 00:10:06,310 --> 00:10:09,350 mental health . I will not send another 247 00:10:09,350 --> 00:10:11,072 generation americans to war in 248 00:10:11,072 --> 00:10:13,510 Afghanistan with no reasonable 249 00:10:13,510 --> 00:10:15,940 expectation of achieving a different 250 00:10:15,940 --> 00:10:18,910 outcome . The United States cannot 251 00:10:18,910 --> 00:10:21,580 afford to remain tethered to policies , 252 00:10:21,590 --> 00:10:23,990 creating a response to the world as it 253 00:10:23,990 --> 00:10:27,960 was 20 years ago . We need to meet the 254 00:10:27,960 --> 00:10:30,980 threats where they are today . Today , 255 00:10:30,980 --> 00:10:33,091 the terrorist threat has metastasized 256 00:10:33,091 --> 00:10:36,660 beyond Afghanistan . So we are 257 00:10:36,660 --> 00:10:38,600 repositioning our resources and 258 00:10:38,610 --> 00:10:40,820 adapting our counterterrorism posture 259 00:10:40,830 --> 00:10:43,460 to meet the threats where they are now 260 00:10:44,240 --> 00:10:46,460 significantly higher in South Asia , 261 00:10:46,750 --> 00:10:49,490 the Middle East and Africa . But make 262 00:10:49,490 --> 00:10:51,990 no mistake , our military and 263 00:10:51,990 --> 00:10:54,460 intelligence leaders are confident they 264 00:10:54,460 --> 00:10:56,516 have the capabilities to protect the 265 00:10:56,516 --> 00:10:58,600 homeland and our interests from any 266 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:01,700 resurgent terrorist challenge emerging 267 00:11:01,700 --> 00:11:04,890 or emanating from Afghanistan . We are 268 00:11:04,890 --> 00:11:07,730 developing a counterterrorism over the 269 00:11:07,730 --> 00:11:10,840 horizon capability allow us to keep our 270 00:11:10,840 --> 00:11:13,690 eyes firmly fixed and any direct threat 271 00:11:13,690 --> 00:11:15,857 to the United States in the region and 272 00:11:15,857 --> 00:11:18,160 act quickly and decisively if needed . 273 00:11:19,140 --> 00:11:21,140 We also need to focus on shoring up 274 00:11:21,140 --> 00:11:24,110 America's core strengths to meet that 275 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:26,590 the strategic compass , competition 276 00:11:26,600 --> 00:11:29,030 with china and other nations that is 277 00:11:29,030 --> 00:11:31,141 really going to determine , determine 278 00:11:31,141 --> 00:11:33,670 our future . We have to defeat COVID-19 279 00:11:33,670 --> 00:11:36,140 at home and around the world . Make 280 00:11:36,140 --> 00:11:38,362 sure we're better prepared for the next 281 00:11:38,362 --> 00:11:40,584 pandemic or biological threat . We need 282 00:11:40,584 --> 00:11:42,640 to establish international norms for 283 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:45,430 cyberspace and the use of emergency 284 00:11:45,430 --> 00:11:47,950 emerging technologies . We need to take 285 00:11:47,950 --> 00:11:50,061 concerted action to fight existential 286 00:11:50,061 --> 00:11:53,390 threats of climate change And we will 287 00:11:53,390 --> 00:11:55,690 be more formidable to our adversaries 288 00:11:55,700 --> 00:11:58,490 and competitors over the long run if we 289 00:11:58,490 --> 00:12:01,270 fight the battles of the next 20 years , 290 00:12:01,280 --> 00:12:04,250 not the last 20 years . Finally , 291 00:12:05,240 --> 00:12:07,184 I want to recognize the incredible 292 00:12:07,184 --> 00:12:09,730 sacrifice and dedication that the U . S . 293 00:12:09,730 --> 00:12:12,350 Military and civilian personnel serving 294 00:12:12,350 --> 00:12:14,960 alongside our allies and partners have 295 00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:16,849 made over the last two decades in 296 00:12:16,849 --> 00:12:19,620 Afghanistan . I want to honor the 297 00:12:19,620 --> 00:12:21,290 significance of what they've 298 00:12:21,290 --> 00:12:23,920 accomplished and the great personal 299 00:12:23,920 --> 00:12:27,160 risk they encountered an incredible 300 00:12:27,160 --> 00:12:30,510 cost to their families pursuing the 301 00:12:30,520 --> 00:12:33,700 terrorist threat some of the most 302 00:12:33,710 --> 00:12:36,480 unforgiving terrain on the planet . 303 00:12:36,480 --> 00:12:38,647 I've been almost throughout the entire 304 00:12:38,647 --> 00:12:40,830 country , Ensuring there hasn't been 305 00:12:40,830 --> 00:12:42,830 another attack on the Homeland from 306 00:12:42,830 --> 00:12:45,060 Afghanistan for the last 20 years . 307 00:12:45,640 --> 00:12:48,770 Taking out bin laden , I want to thank 308 00:12:48,770 --> 00:12:52,540 you all for your service and 309 00:12:52,550 --> 00:12:54,680 and the dedication to the mission so 310 00:12:54,680 --> 00:12:57,730 many of you had given and to the 311 00:12:57,730 --> 00:12:59,841 sacrifices that you and your families 312 00:12:59,841 --> 00:13:01,960 are made over the long course of this 313 00:13:01,960 --> 00:13:05,920 war . I will never forget those who 314 00:13:05,920 --> 00:13:08,087 gave the last full measure of devotion 315 00:13:08,087 --> 00:13:10,550 for their country in Afghanistan or 316 00:13:10,550 --> 00:13:12,220 those whose lives have been 317 00:13:12,280 --> 00:13:14,180 immeasurably altered by wounds 318 00:13:14,180 --> 00:13:16,513 sustained in the service of the country . 319 00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:20,460 We're ending America's longest war , 320 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:23,790 but we'll always always honor the 321 00:13:23,790 --> 00:13:25,846 bravery of the american patriots who 322 00:13:25,846 --> 00:13:29,790 served it . God bless you all and 323 00:13:29,790 --> 00:13:33,150 may God protect our troops . Thank you 324 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:37,250 a taliban . 325 00:13:37,260 --> 00:13:41,210 A taliban takeover of Afghanistan . Now 326 00:13:41,210 --> 00:13:43,950 inevitable . No , it is not 327 00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:47,340 Because you have the Afghan troops have 328 00:13:47,340 --> 00:13:51,060 300,000 well 329 00:13:51,060 --> 00:13:53,290 equipped as well as script as any army 330 00:13:53,300 --> 00:13:56,870 in the world and an air force Against 331 00:13:56,870 --> 00:14:00,840 something like 75,000 Taliban . It 332 00:14:00,840 --> 00:14:01,951 is not inevitable . 333 00:14:02,340 --> 00:14:05,950 You trust the taliban . Mr 334 00:14:05,950 --> 00:14:08,283 President . You trust the taliban , sir , 335 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:10,410 you , is that a serious question ? 336 00:14:10,420 --> 00:14:12,642 Absolutely serious question ? You trust 337 00:14:12,642 --> 00:14:14,630 the taliban ? I do not treat the 338 00:14:14,630 --> 00:14:17,070 taliban . No , I do not trust the 339 00:14:17,070 --> 00:14:18,400 taliban . So 340 00:14:22,230 --> 00:14:25,150 what Mr President will you amplify that 341 00:14:25,150 --> 00:14:27,340 question ? Will amplify your answer . 342 00:14:27,340 --> 00:14:30,080 Please don't chris a silly question . 343 00:14:30,080 --> 00:14:32,540 Do I trust the taliban ? No , But I 344 00:14:32,540 --> 00:14:34,570 trust the capacity of the Afghan 345 00:14:34,570 --> 00:14:37,090 military who is better trained , better 346 00:14:37,090 --> 00:14:40,500 equipped and more more competent in 347 00:14:40,500 --> 00:14:42,722 terms of conducting war . Yes , Ma'am . 348 00:14:42,722 --> 00:14:46,500 Thank you Mr . President , given the 349 00:14:46,500 --> 00:14:48,667 amount of money that has been spent on 350 00:14:48,667 --> 00:14:50,889 the number of lives that have been lost 351 00:14:50,889 --> 00:14:53,056 in your view with making this decision 352 00:14:53,180 --> 00:14:55,960 for the last 20 years worth it . 353 00:14:58,540 --> 00:15:00,596 You know , my record . I can tell by 354 00:15:00,596 --> 00:15:03,030 the way you asked the question I 355 00:15:03,030 --> 00:15:05,760 opposed permanently 356 00:15:06,540 --> 00:15:09,750 having american forces in Afghanistan . 357 00:15:10,740 --> 00:15:12,930 I argued from the beginning , as you 358 00:15:12,930 --> 00:15:15,950 may recall , it came to light after 359 00:15:17,340 --> 00:15:20,580 the administration was over last in our 360 00:15:20,580 --> 00:15:24,120 administration . No nation has ever 361 00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:27,560 unified Afghanistan . No nation 362 00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:31,260 empires have gone there and not done it . 363 00:15:32,740 --> 00:15:35,850 The focus we had and I strongly 364 00:15:35,850 --> 00:15:37,683 supported and you may remember I 365 00:15:37,683 --> 00:15:40,890 physically went to Afghanistan . I was 366 00:15:40,890 --> 00:15:44,350 up in that past where Osama bin laden 367 00:15:45,140 --> 00:15:48,710 was allegedly escaped or out of 368 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:52,530 harm's way . We went for two 369 00:15:52,530 --> 00:15:55,760 reasons . One , two 370 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:04,000 bring Osama bin laden to the gates of 371 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:07,510 hell . As I said at the time , the 372 00:16:07,510 --> 00:16:10,780 second reason was to eliminate Al 373 00:16:10,780 --> 00:16:14,190 Qaeda's capacity to deal with more 374 00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:16,367 attacks in the United States from that 375 00:16:16,367 --> 00:16:19,420 territory . We accomplished both of 376 00:16:19,420 --> 00:16:23,250 those objectives period . That's 377 00:16:23,250 --> 00:16:25,710 what I believe from the beginning , why 378 00:16:25,710 --> 00:16:27,710 we should be and why we should have 379 00:16:27,710 --> 00:16:31,510 gone to Afghanistan . That job 380 00:16:31,510 --> 00:16:35,030 had been over for some time and that's 381 00:16:35,030 --> 00:16:37,270 why I believe that this is the right 382 00:16:37,270 --> 00:16:39,360 decision and quite frankly overdue 383 00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:47,960 the people of Afghanistan . Yeah . Mr . 384 00:16:47,960 --> 00:16:49,904 President , you very much your own 385 00:16:49,904 --> 00:16:51,904 intelligence community has assessed 386 00:16:51,904 --> 00:16:54,071 that the Afghan government will likely 387 00:16:54,071 --> 00:16:56,600 collapse . That's not true . Can you 388 00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:58,767 please clarify what they have told you 389 00:16:58,767 --> 00:17:00,989 about whether that will happen or not ? 390 00:17:00,989 --> 00:17:03,044 That is not true . They did not they 391 00:17:03,044 --> 00:17:05,211 didn't did not reach that conclusion . 392 00:17:05,540 --> 00:17:07,830 What is the level of confidence that 393 00:17:07,830 --> 00:17:10,040 they have that it will not collapse ? 394 00:17:10,350 --> 00:17:14,020 The Afghan government and leadership 395 00:17:14,020 --> 00:17:17,040 has to come together ? They clearly 396 00:17:17,040 --> 00:17:20,530 have the capacity to sustain the 397 00:17:20,530 --> 00:17:23,850 government in place . The question is , 398 00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:26,950 will they generate the kind of cohesion 399 00:17:26,950 --> 00:17:28,839 to do it ? It's not a question of 400 00:17:28,839 --> 00:17:30,950 whether they have the capacity , they 401 00:17:30,950 --> 00:17:32,839 have the capacity , they have the 402 00:17:32,839 --> 00:17:35,700 forces , they have the equipment . The 403 00:17:35,700 --> 00:17:37,811 question is , will they do and I want 404 00:17:37,811 --> 00:17:39,811 to make clear , but I made clear to 405 00:17:39,811 --> 00:17:42,420 Ghani that we are not going to walk 406 00:17:42,420 --> 00:17:44,610 away and not sustain their ability to 407 00:17:44,610 --> 00:17:47,490 maintain that force we are . We're 408 00:17:47,490 --> 00:17:49,712 going to also work to make sure we help 409 00:17:49,712 --> 00:17:51,823 them in terms of everything from food 410 00:17:51,823 --> 00:17:53,990 necessities and other things in in the 411 00:17:53,990 --> 00:17:57,820 region . But there is not a 412 00:17:57,830 --> 00:18:00,850 conclusion that in fact they cannot 413 00:18:00,860 --> 00:18:03,630 defeat the Taliban . I believe the only 414 00:18:03,630 --> 00:18:05,852 way there's going to be this is now joe 415 00:18:05,852 --> 00:18:08,130 biden , not the intelligence community . 416 00:18:08,130 --> 00:18:10,297 The only way there is ultimately going 417 00:18:10,297 --> 00:18:12,519 to be peace and security in Afghanistan 418 00:18:12,519 --> 00:18:14,686 is that they work out a motive vivendi 419 00:18:14,686 --> 00:18:16,519 with the Taliban and they make a 420 00:18:16,519 --> 00:18:18,797 judgment as to how they can make peace . 421 00:18:18,797 --> 00:18:20,963 And the likelihood there's going to be 422 00:18:20,963 --> 00:18:23,186 one unified government in Afghanistan , 423 00:18:23,186 --> 00:18:25,408 controlling the whole country is highly 424 00:18:25,408 --> 00:18:28,790 unlikely . President . Thank you . But 425 00:18:28,790 --> 00:18:30,957 we have talked to your own top general 426 00:18:30,957 --> 00:18:33,179 in Afghanistan . General scott miller . 427 00:18:33,179 --> 00:18:35,346 He told abc news the conditions are so 428 00:18:35,346 --> 00:18:37,512 concerning at this point that it could 429 00:18:37,512 --> 00:18:39,512 result in a civil war . So if Kabul 430 00:18:39,512 --> 00:18:41,568 falls to the Taliban , what will the 431 00:18:41,568 --> 00:18:43,512 United States do about it ? Yeah , 432 00:18:46,440 --> 00:18:49,870 You said two things . One that if it 433 00:18:49,870 --> 00:18:52,520 could result in a civil war That's 434 00:18:52,520 --> 00:18:54,742 different than the Taliban succeeding . 435 00:18:54,742 --> 00:18:57,890 No one Number two , the question of 436 00:18:57,890 --> 00:19:00,420 what will be done is going to be 437 00:19:00,420 --> 00:19:02,309 implicated . It can implicate the 438 00:19:02,309 --> 00:19:04,780 entire region as well . There's a 439 00:19:04,780 --> 00:19:06,613 number of countries have a grave 440 00:19:06,613 --> 00:19:08,836 concern about what's going to happen in 441 00:19:08,836 --> 00:19:11,113 Afghanistan relative to their security . 442 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:14,460 The question is , how much of a threat 443 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:18,010 to the United States of America and to 444 00:19:18,010 --> 00:19:21,890 our allies is whatever results in terms 445 00:19:21,890 --> 00:19:23,790 of a government or an agreement , 446 00:19:23,830 --> 00:19:27,240 that's when that judge will be made Mr 447 00:19:27,240 --> 00:19:29,184 President . Some , some Vietnamese 448 00:19:29,184 --> 00:19:32,470 veterans see echoes of their experience 449 00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:34,647 in this withdrawal in Afghanistan . Do 450 00:19:34,647 --> 00:19:36,591 you see any parallels between this 451 00:19:36,591 --> 00:19:38,702 withdraw and what happened in Vietnam 452 00:19:38,702 --> 00:19:40,369 with some people feeling none 453 00:19:40,369 --> 00:19:42,591 whatsoever . zero . What you had is you 454 00:19:42,591 --> 00:19:44,647 had entire brigades breaking through 455 00:19:44,647 --> 00:19:46,813 the gates of our embassy . six of them 456 00:19:46,813 --> 00:19:50,510 not mistaken . The Taliban is not the 457 00:19:50,510 --> 00:19:52,566 south of the North Vietnamese army . 458 00:19:52,940 --> 00:19:54,773 They're not they're not remotely 459 00:19:54,773 --> 00:19:56,773 comparable in terms of capability . 460 00:19:56,773 --> 00:19:58,884 There's gonna be no circumstances you 461 00:19:58,884 --> 00:20:01,110 see people being lifted off the roof of 462 00:20:01,110 --> 00:20:03,970 a embassy in the of the United States 463 00:20:03,980 --> 00:20:06,940 from Afghanistan . It is not at all 464 00:20:06,940 --> 00:20:10,650 comfortable . The 465 00:20:10,770 --> 00:20:13,103 other side . Hang on a second president . 466 00:20:13,103 --> 00:20:15,159 How serious was the corruption among 467 00:20:15,159 --> 00:20:17,103 the Afghanistan government to this 468 00:20:17,103 --> 00:20:20,850 mission failing there ? Well , first of 469 00:20:20,850 --> 00:20:23,440 all , the mission hasn't failed . Yeah , 470 00:20:23,940 --> 00:20:27,170 there is uh in Afghanistan . 471 00:20:27,940 --> 00:20:31,740 Um , and all parties , 472 00:20:31,750 --> 00:20:34,410 there's been corruption . The question 473 00:20:34,410 --> 00:20:37,370 is , can there be an agreement on unity 474 00:20:37,370 --> 00:20:39,950 of purpose ? What is the objective ? 475 00:20:40,440 --> 00:20:42,662 For example , It started off that we're 476 00:20:42,662 --> 00:20:44,940 going to be negotiations between the 477 00:20:44,940 --> 00:20:46,970 Taliban and the Afghan national 478 00:20:46,970 --> 00:20:49,260 security forces and the Afghan 479 00:20:49,260 --> 00:20:52,430 government that that 480 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:55,860 didn't come , didn't come to fruition . 481 00:20:56,440 --> 00:20:58,670 So the question now is , where do they 482 00:20:58,670 --> 00:21:01,830 go from here ? That the jury is still 483 00:21:01,830 --> 00:21:03,997 out ? But the likelihood there's going 484 00:21:03,997 --> 00:21:05,920 to be the Taliban overrunning 485 00:21:05,920 --> 00:21:08,360 everything and owning the whole country 486 00:21:08,370 --> 00:21:11,980 is highly unlikely . Yes . The United 487 00:21:11,980 --> 00:21:15,720 States for the loss of Afghan civilian 488 00:21:15,720 --> 00:21:18,540 lives , that could happen . No , no , 489 00:21:18,550 --> 00:21:21,880 no , no . It's up to the people of 490 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:24,680 Afghanistan decide on what government 491 00:21:24,680 --> 00:21:27,040 they want , not us to impose the 492 00:21:27,040 --> 00:21:29,750 government on them . No country has 493 00:21:29,750 --> 00:21:31,750 ever been able to do that . Keep in 494 00:21:31,750 --> 00:21:33,861 mind as a student of history , as I'm 495 00:21:33,861 --> 00:21:35,917 sure you are . Never has Afghanistan 496 00:21:35,917 --> 00:21:38,028 been a united Country ? Not in all of 497 00:21:38,030 --> 00:21:41,350 its history , not in all of its history . 498 00:21:41,940 --> 00:21:45,770 A different mission 499 00:21:45,780 --> 00:21:48,080 accomplished moment . What is it ? No , 500 00:21:48,080 --> 00:21:50,970 there's no mission accomplished . A 501 00:21:50,980 --> 00:21:53,202 mission was accomplished in that we get 502 00:21:53,202 --> 00:21:55,440 a scott , Osama bin laden and terrorism 503 00:21:55,440 --> 00:21:57,607 is not emanating from that part of the 504 00:21:57,607 --> 00:22:00,700 world . It's 505 00:22:01,030 --> 00:22:02,919 safety . As you just said in your 506 00:22:02,919 --> 00:22:04,974 remarks , are you satisfied with the 507 00:22:04,974 --> 00:22:07,570 timeline of relocating afghan nationals ? 508 00:22:07,570 --> 00:22:09,737 Is it happening quickly enough to your 509 00:22:09,737 --> 00:22:11,959 satisfaction if it may not happen until 510 00:22:11,959 --> 00:22:14,014 next month ? At the end , Much of us 511 00:22:14,014 --> 00:22:16,237 already happened . There's already been 512 00:22:16,237 --> 00:22:18,403 people , about 1000 people have gotten 513 00:22:18,403 --> 00:22:20,626 on aircraft and come come to the United 514 00:22:20,626 --> 00:22:22,848 States already on commercial aircraft . 515 00:22:22,848 --> 00:22:25,070 So as I said , there's over 2500 people 516 00:22:25,070 --> 00:22:27,181 that as from January to now have have 517 00:22:27,181 --> 00:22:29,380 gotten those visas and only half 518 00:22:29,380 --> 00:22:31,700 decided that they wanted to leave . The 519 00:22:31,700 --> 00:22:34,660 point is that I think the whole process 520 00:22:34,660 --> 00:22:37,160 has to be speeded up period in terms of 521 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,020 being able to get these visas . All 522 00:22:40,020 --> 00:22:43,120 right , why can't the US evacuate these 523 00:22:43,130 --> 00:22:45,540 afghan translators to the United States 524 00:22:45,540 --> 00:22:48,000 to await their visa processing as some 525 00:22:48,010 --> 00:22:50,010 immigrants at the southern border ? 526 00:22:50,010 --> 00:22:52,343 Because it doesn't allow that to happen . 527 00:22:52,343 --> 00:22:54,121 And that's why we're asking the 528 00:22:54,121 --> 00:22:56,343 Congress to consider changing the law . 529 00:22:56,343 --> 00:22:58,590 But in the meantime , we can guarantee 530 00:22:58,590 --> 00:23:00,701 their safety if they wish to leave by 531 00:23:00,701 --> 00:23:03,520 taking the third countries and or while 532 00:23:03,520 --> 00:23:06,060 the weight is taking place to come to 533 00:23:06,440 --> 00:23:09,270 Uh two . And hopefully while they're 534 00:23:09,270 --> 00:23:11,437 waiting there to be able to bring them 535 00:23:11,437 --> 00:23:13,659 back to the United States , that's what 536 00:23:13,659 --> 00:23:16,610 they choose to do 537 00:23:18,020 --> 00:23:20,131 any message . Good message for Afghan 538 00:23:20,131 --> 00:23:22,020 women in future because they have 539 00:23:22,020 --> 00:23:24,242 achievement . They are really concerned 540 00:23:24,242 --> 00:23:27,170 about their achievement . They are very 541 00:23:27,170 --> 00:23:29,770 concerned with good reason . When I was 542 00:23:29,770 --> 00:23:31,992 in Afghanistan , I've been there number 543 00:23:31,992 --> 00:23:33,937 of times . I remember being in the 544 00:23:33,937 --> 00:23:37,090 school outside . And uh and by the way , 545 00:23:37,090 --> 00:23:39,810 the the schools in Afghanistan are not 546 00:23:39,810 --> 00:23:42,090 fundamentally , and like schools in the 547 00:23:42,090 --> 00:23:44,410 west coast where they have , you know , 548 00:23:44,420 --> 00:23:47,900 a an area in the middle that is sort of 549 00:23:47,900 --> 00:23:50,170 like it looks like a playground and 550 00:23:50,170 --> 00:23:53,440 single story buildings uh , connected 551 00:23:53,440 --> 00:23:57,120 around it . And I remember saying to , 552 00:23:57,130 --> 00:23:59,960 uh , speaking to a group of young women , 553 00:23:59,970 --> 00:24:02,520 I guess they're roughly don't hold me 554 00:24:02,520 --> 00:24:06,050 this . They look like they'd be 14 , 15 555 00:24:06,050 --> 00:24:08,330 years old and they're in school . And 556 00:24:08,330 --> 00:24:10,550 there was a tiered classroom with 557 00:24:10,550 --> 00:24:12,930 single light bulbs hanging from the 558 00:24:12,930 --> 00:24:16,580 ceiling as I know , you know , And uh , 559 00:24:16,590 --> 00:24:19,010 I said , you know , the United States 560 00:24:19,010 --> 00:24:21,740 came here to make sure that we got this 561 00:24:21,740 --> 00:24:24,110 terrorist , Osama bin laden and that 562 00:24:24,110 --> 00:24:26,540 terrorists didn't amass again to to go 563 00:24:26,540 --> 00:24:28,484 after our country . And then we're 564 00:24:28,484 --> 00:24:30,540 going to have to leave . And a young 565 00:24:30,540 --> 00:24:32,484 woman said , you can't leave , you 566 00:24:32,484 --> 00:24:32,230 can't leave . It was it was 567 00:24:32,230 --> 00:24:34,341 heartbreaking . You can't leave . She 568 00:24:34,341 --> 00:24:36,850 said , I want to be a doctor . I want 569 00:24:36,850 --> 00:24:39,250 to be a doctor . I want to be a doctor . 570 00:24:39,250 --> 00:24:41,472 If you leave I'll never be able to be a 571 00:24:41,472 --> 00:24:44,140 doctor . Well that's why we spent so 572 00:24:44,140 --> 00:24:46,980 much time and money training the Afghan 573 00:24:46,980 --> 00:24:50,340 security forces to do the work of 574 00:24:50,340 --> 00:24:53,190 defending that if every work anyway . 575 00:24:53,350 --> 00:24:56,810 So yes I'm aware I'm gonna take one 576 00:24:56,810 --> 00:24:57,810 more question . 577 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:09,180 Mr . President . Thank you . I wanted 578 00:25:09,180 --> 00:25:11,360 to ask with the benefit of hindsight . 579 00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:13,584 You've spoken to the fact that the 580 00:25:13,584 --> 00:25:15,807 taliban are sort of at their militarily 581 00:25:15,807 --> 00:25:17,973 strongest point That you've seen in 20 582 00:25:17,973 --> 00:25:19,918 years . How do you feel personally 583 00:25:19,918 --> 00:25:21,640 about that with the benefit of 584 00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:23,696 hindsight and all of the dollars and 585 00:25:23,696 --> 00:25:25,696 investments and and American troops 586 00:25:25,696 --> 00:25:27,751 that were sent there relative to the 587 00:25:27,751 --> 00:25:30,029 training and capacity of the A . N . S . 588 00:25:30,029 --> 00:25:32,770 F . And the train the federal police . 589 00:25:32,780 --> 00:25:35,110 They're not even close in terms of the 590 00:25:35,110 --> 00:25:37,910 capacity . I was making the point . The 591 00:25:37,910 --> 00:25:41,270 point was that here we were . I was . 592 00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:43,584 The argument is what we could stay 593 00:25:43,584 --> 00:25:45,807 because no one was dying . No americans 594 00:25:45,807 --> 00:25:48,770 are being shot . So why leave Once the 595 00:25:48,770 --> 00:25:50,492 agreement was made by the last 596 00:25:50,492 --> 00:25:52,603 administration ? We're gonna leave by 597 00:25:52,603 --> 00:25:54,770 May one . It was very clear that the 598 00:25:54,770 --> 00:25:57,160 taliban that had always been a problem 599 00:25:57,740 --> 00:25:59,880 was even a more sophisticated problem 600 00:25:59,880 --> 00:26:01,820 than they were before . Not more 601 00:26:01,820 --> 00:26:05,290 sophisticated than the NSF the 602 00:26:05,290 --> 00:26:07,400 government more than they were . The 603 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:09,122 point being that it would have 604 00:26:09,122 --> 00:26:11,289 increased the prospect that they would 605 00:26:11,289 --> 00:26:13,344 have been able to take more lives of 606 00:26:13,344 --> 00:26:15,400 americans if they decided we weren't 607 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:17,567 going to go after . That was the point 608 00:26:17,567 --> 00:26:19,622 I was making . Thank you all so very 609 00:26:19,622 --> 00:26:22,980 much , officials on the withdrawal . Mr 610 00:26:22,980 --> 00:26:26,940 President . Okay . Yeah .