After getting grilled by members of the Lower House, the US Secretary of Defense stated that the Pentagon was unaware of the developments that led to Kabul's fall. To many, this claim by Lloyd Austin, 68, the present Sec Def is not so reliable and gives an idea that something is amiss in the Biden Administration.
After the US left the country in such disarray, questions have arisen on how can the president make the exit of the US messy.
The search for answers starts with those who were responsible for how to do the pullout by the books, without mistakes. However, there were apparent lapses.
What happened in Afghanistan? Who needs to resign?
Austin was asked about the Afghan debacle last Tuesday and other pertinent questions about the problematic pullout. Members of the lower house made inquiries with the secretary of defense as the first hearing to investigate how the Jihadis overran the country, reported the Express UK.
A former four-star general, he said as his assessment that the Trained Afghan army and partners weren't there when the Taliban rolled in. Essentially saying a third-world guerilla force was able to over the US military with so little effort. The Pentagon never saw it coming.
He remarks that to say anything else will be very dishonest.
Furthermore, like Joe Biden, he laid alleged blame on the Afghanistan troop of the government, saying the Afghan army and its senior officers were corrupt and had less effective leadership as well, noted UK News Chant.
Secretary of Defense, Austin mentioned that Pentagon was unaware of the developments that President Ghani had rotated his commanders which led to an unsavory condition that made things worse.
He claimed that a snowball effect came from the deals of the Taliban, made with local leaders after the Doha agreement.
Everything went south in Kabul, with a messy withdrawal after a suicide bomber detonated the explosive jacket. It kills 13 young service members that led to scouring the Biden White House in the US and abroad, New Indian Express.
The rating of Joe Biden was very low because of the missteps. In one of the recent Rasmussen polls, the drop in approval is very shocking -17 percent is one of the lowest ever for him.
In the polls to see who is preferred, it is now that Donald Trump who has trounced the ex-VP of Obama.
During the 2020 elections, Joe Biden allegedly got 306 votes in the electoral college, to Trump's 232 which is contested until now.
Rough waters ahead, to each his own
According to the statements of General Mark Milley and Frank McKenzie that would be a source of trouble for Joe Biden.
Both generals say that after the debacle in Kabul, they suggest to the president that keeping a 2500-man force would be the best option, not total pullout.
Last August, Biden said that his military advisers had not said anything to keep troops in the country which is threatening to be a major problem for him.
Milley, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was reported to have said Kabul might fall in 2020. According to him, he said that a year ago and that was allegedly consistent till 2021.
The same for the secretary of defense, Austin, but he still says that the Pentagon was unaware of the developments after he was supposed to his access to updates from Afghanistan.
Related article: Ex-Trump Security Adviser Says Taliban Could Get Nukes if Pakistan Falls to Them that Could Endanger the West
