Taliban to give civilians safe passage to Kabul airport: US security chief

United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Tuesday said that the Taliban, in conversation with the US, said that civilians who are trying to reach the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Afghanistan’s national capital Kabul will be given a safe passage.

According to statements given by Sullivan in the White House briefing on Tuesday, the United States is speaking to the Taliban about the timeline of the evacuation, which can last till the end of August.

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He said, “The Taliban have informed us that they are prepared to provide the safe passage of civilians to the airport, and we intend to hold them to that commitment”, according to reports from Reuters.

He added in the White House statement, “We believe that this can go till the 31st. We are talking to them about what the exact timetable is for how this will all play out, and I don’t want to negotiate in public on working out the best modality to get the most people out in the most efficient way”, as per Reuters.

While diplomatically addressing the situation in Kabul, which has been under the control of Afghanistan since Sunday, Sullivan said “it is going to be up to the Taliban to show the rest of the world who they are and how they intend to proceed”. However, the United States National Security Advisor and close aide to President Joe Biden question the “track record” of the Taliban.

Sullivan’s briefing on Tuesday also provided an insight into the situation in the White House. He said that President Joe Biden had not spoken to any of the world leaders since Kabul was taken over by the Taliban. 

Moreover, presenting a defensive stance on behalf of the President, Sullivan said that Biden is “taking responsibility for every decision the United States government took with respect to Afghanistan“, according to reports from CNN.