The majority of European troops are already out of Afghanistan. They have withdrawn quietly months before the U.S.-led mission was expected to end. This is part of an anticlimactic closing to the “forever War” that could leave the country on the edge of civil war.
Germany and Italy declared their missions to Afghanistan finished on Wednesday, and Poland’s last troops returned home. This marked a significant turning point in their deployments nearly twenty years after the first Western soldiers arrived there.
The Associated Press has analyzed announcements from several European countries and found that a majority have left without much ceremony. This contrasts with the public display of force and unity by NATO allies who backed the U.S. invasion of Iraq to exterminate al-Qaida.
The war moved from one mission to the next over the following decades. The United Nations recommended a small footprint and avoided nation-building under the former U.S. President George W. Bush. As the years passed, NATO and U.S. soldiers took on more roles in Afghanistan’s National Security and Defense Forces and training officers. The U.S. military and NATO numbers reached over 150,000 at the height of the war.
NATO reached an April agreement to withdraw approximately 7,000 non-American troops from Afghanistan in order to match President Joe Biden’s decision that all American troops should be pulled from Afghanistan, which began May 1.
Biden established a September 11 deadline for the U.S. troop withdrawal. Recent statements by American officials indicated that the pullout would be complete by July 4. Many allies have also moved to end their presence by that date.
NATO refused to provide an update Wednesday regarding how many countries still have troops in its Resolute Support Mission. However, a review of 19 countries’ announcements shows that over 4,800 non-American troops have already left.
Although the U.S. refuses to provide troop numbers, Biden announced that between 2,500-3,000 troops had been deployed when he declared the final pullout. The U.S. also refuses to provide a date for their final withdrawal.
In Afghanistan, approximately 832,000 American troops were present as of February. There were approximately 25,100 civilians from the Defense Department who had also served.
Germany announced publicly the end to its almost 20-year-old deployment late Tuesday evening in a statement and a series tweets by the defense minister. This was shortly after the last aircraft carrying its troops left Afghan airspace.
Three transport aircraft arrived at Wunstorf, a northern German air base on Wednesday afternoon. The soldiers, dressed in masks, gathered on the tarmac to witness a brief ceremony. However, the military gave them a larger reception due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Brig. The last commander of the German contingent was Gen. Ansgar Meyer. “As your commander I can tell you that mission accomplished. You have completed your task.”
The top American general in Afghanistan, however, gave a sobering assessment Tuesday. He warned about the Taliban’s recent rapid loss of areas and warned that civil war could ensue.
The European countries pulled out of Germany amid a flurry of withdrawals. Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak welcomed the last Polish troops that had left on Wednesday. Over the last 20 years, 33,000 Polish troops served in Afghanistan.
Late Tuesday night, the last Italian troops arrived at Pisa’s military airport. Italy declared its mission in Afghanistan ended in a statement Wednesday by Defense Minister Lorenzo Guerini, paying tribute to the 53 Italians killed and 723 injured in the past 20 years.
Guerini stated that Italy would continue to be committed to Afghanistan, but in different forms, starting with strengthening development cooperation and supporting Afghan institutions.
On Monday, Georgia’s last troops returned to home. Romania, on Saturday, brought its remaining 140 troops home. Norway pulled out on Saturday. Last week, troops from the Netherlands, Estonia, and Denmark also returned home. Spain pulled out its last troops in May 13. Sweden and Belgium followed suit on May 25. Portugal, Slovenia, Finland and North Macedonia have also left.
As security in Afghanistan worsens, the pullout is approaching its final phase. The Taliban have taken over key districts along important transportation routes since May 1, when the withdrawal began. Many of the fallen soldiers were forced to surrender by their Afghan counterparts, and often they were persuaded by their elders to leave their posts. There have also been many bitter military battles. Afghan troops often lost when they could not be resupplied.
General Austen S. Miller, the U.S. military commander for Afghanistan, expressed concern over the reemergence of militias. These were created to aid the nation’s security forces, but have a reputation for mass killing.
He said that a civil war was a path that could be seen if it continues on its current trajectory. This should concern the entire world.
Ank Bijleveld Schouten, the Dutch Defense Minister, spoke out about the uncertain future at a ceremony last Wednesday to mark the official close of the Dutch deployment.
She said that there were reports about the Taliban’s rise, increasing violence in the same areas as ours. Although there has been a lot of progress, we need to be realistic and realize that the results are not permanent.
