Trump calls on Biden to resign over Taliban takeover of Afghanistan

By Mucahit Oktay

NEW YORK (AA) - Former US President Donald Trump called on his successor to resign Sunday amid the withdrawal of American troops in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s rapid takeover of the country.

"It's time for Joe Biden to resign in disgrace for allowing what happened in Afghanistan," Trump said in a written statement.

"This shouldn't be a big deal. Because he wasn't legitimately elected," he added, also criticizing Biden over the surge of COVID-19 cases in the US, immigration, the economy and energy policies.

He said the withdrawal from Afghanistan would have been “much different and much more successful” if he were president.

“What Joe Biden has done with Afghanistan is legendary. It will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history!” he said in another statement.

This will be counted as one of the “greatest defeats” in US history, Trump added.

Biden on Saturday defended his decision to withdraw US troops, saying the American presence in Afghanistan for the past 20 years was not acceptable.

"One more year, or five more years, of US military presence would not have made a difference if the Afghan military cannot or will not hold its own country. And an endless American presence in the middle of another country’s civil conflict was not acceptable to me.

“When I came to office, I inherited a deal cut by my predecessor—which he invited the Taliban to discuss at Camp David on the eve of 9/11 of 2019—that left the Taliban in the strongest position militarily since 2001 and imposed a May 1, 2021 deadline on U.S. Forces. Shortly before he left office, he also drew U.S. Forces down to a bare minimum of 2,500. Therefore, when I became President, I faced a choice—follow through on the deal, with a brief extension to get our Forces and our allies’ Forces out safely, or ramp up our presence and send more American troops to fight once again in another country’s civil conflict. I was the fourth President to preside over an American troop presence in Afghanistan—two Republicans, two Democrats. I would not, and will not, pass this war onto a fifth,” he added.