US will maintain strong diplomatic presence in Afghanistan, says Blinken

Washington DC: The US is only withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan, not withdrawing from the country, and it is determined to maintain a strong diplomatic presence there to extend economic and humanitarian support, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.

On the directions of President Joe Biden, the US is in the process of withdrawing all its troops from Afghanistan by September. It has already withdrawn about half of its troops from the war-torn country.

"Even as we're withdrawing forces from Afghanistan, we are not withdrawing from Afghanistan. We're determined to maintain a strong embassy presence. Other countries are as well," Blinken on Tuesday told members of the Senate Appropriations Committee during a Congressional hearing on the 2022 Budget Request for the State Department.

Responding to apprehensions of senators about the future of several programmes in Afghanistan, including those for women and children, Blinken assured them that the programmes will continue with the support of the Congress.

He said the government which represents the people and their interest, is the government that the US and the international community will support.

"Right now, there are conversations, discussions, potentially negotiations going on between the government and the Taliban, and to see if they can come to a peaceful accommodation and end the conflict," the secretary of state said.

"But, as it stands, we're withdrawing our forces, we're not withdrawing from Afghanistan. We remain very much engaged. We're determine a strong programmatic presence to make sure we can continue to support economic and humanitarian development, and security assistance support for the Afghan government and for the Afghan people," he said.