America’s prolonged ‘war on terror’, which was triggered after the deadly 9/11 attacks, will meet a symbolic end as US President Joe Biden on Wednesday announced the landmark decision of US troops being withdrawn by September 11 this year, precisely 20 years after the attacks. 

Biden said that the United States ‘accomplished objective’ in Afghanistan. 

Till now, there was no confirmation on retraction of US armed forces as the deadline was previously negotiated and set as May 1, however, Washington still portrayed a sense of hesitation. Biden, in his first presser, said that the US will pull back the troops but might have to delay the process due to “tactical reasons”. 

Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani, who has been looped in the “peace process” tweeted on Tuesday that he has been in contact with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. He wrote, “Today, I spoke with Secretary @ABlinken. We discussed the ongoing peace process, the upcoming peace talks in Turkey, and also spoke about the upcoming phone call with President @JoeBiden.”

Also Read: Pentagon unveils policy allowing transgenders to serve in military

Afghanistan, which has witnessed a presence of foreign military forces since the last two decades, is currently home to 2,500 American troops. Additionally, the defence-based alliance of NATO also has posted its force in the country. 

The retraction of foreign troops from Afghanistan is based on a three-way deal between the US, Afghanistan government and Taliban. The deal, which was originally brokered under the administration of former US president Donald Trump, has underlying conditions of agreement, including re-establishing stability in Afghanistan, discontinuing hostile attacks by Taliban on American personnel and peace building. However, the extension of the deadline, which was foreseen by many US officials, has reintroduced uncertainty around the terms of the deal.

Also Read: Joe Biden nominates two women generals to lead military commands

The Washington Post previously reported, quoting sources, that the absence of an exit plan might put US back to square one and put the country back at war with Taliban. “We’re going to zero troops by September”, the unnamed source said. 

The US ‘War on Terror’, which was announced by former US president George W Bush, has been the longest war the country has engaged in and has claimed lives of more than 2,000 American soldiers.