The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson will try to persuade US President Joe Biden to extend the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan during urgent G-7 talks, thus extending the evacuation after August 31, The Telegraph reported, citing sources.
Earlier, Johnson announced that on Tuesday he would hold urgent talks between G7 leaders on the situation in Afghanistan. Biden later said he would take part in them, emphasizing that the meeting will be held in a virtual format. He later said he was discussing with the military a possible extension of the evacuation period. The President expressed hope that there would be no need to extend the final withdrawal.
According to the publication, Johnson intends to personally ask Biden to postpone the withdrawal of US troops after attempts by British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raabe and Defense Secretary Ben Wallace to ask their American counterparts were unsuccessful. The ministers tried to convince the American side of the need for this step in private, the publication notes.
Therefore, they wanted to ease the load on Kabul airport, where thousands of Afghans are still stationed. According to the publication, if Biden does not make concessions, British troops will have to begin withdrawal from Kabul airport within a few days.
“The G7 meeting will focus on what is happening in Afghanistan in the long run, but they will, of course, discuss ongoing evacuation efforts,” a source in the prime minister’s office told the newspaper.