China discards US report on Afghan exit

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) – China Wednesday discarded the US State Department’s report on Washington’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

“Regrettably, the issues that truly call for review and reflection of the US were not touched upon in the (Afghanistan) report,” Wang Wenbin, spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry, told reporters in Beijing.

The report, released last Friday, blamed the successive administrations of Donald Trump and Joe Biden for the “chaotic withdrawal” in August 2021.

“The decisions of both President Trump and President Biden to end the US military mission in Afghanistan had serious consequences for the viability of the Afghan government and its security,” said the unclassified report titled Afghanistan After Action Review (AAR).

In Beijing today, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said: “The report does not include the use of force against a sovereign country in violation of international law, interference in other country’s internal affairs under the pretext of democracy, the selective counter-terrorism campaign which led to more rampant terrorist activities, huge casualties of innocent civilians, and harm to peace and stability in the region.”

“If the intention behind the US review was solely to ensure a more organized and polished handling of future events similar to the situation in Kabul, it would not be a responsible justification for the international community,” said Wang, according to a transcript of his news briefing released by the ministry.

“What the US really needs to do is to return the Afghan central bank’s assets to the Afghan people, lift unilateral sanctions against Afghanistan, fundamentally abandon the policy of abuse of force and correct its acts of blatantly invading other countries and interfering in their internal affairs, and avoid a repeat of the tragedy of Afghanistan,” said Wang.