The Government of Germany has dated the departure of the troops from Afghanistan in July, ahead of schedule, after the president of the United States, Joe Biden, recently announced that the US troops would leave before September 11.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense has explained that the idea is to “shorten the withdrawal”, for which “July 4 is being considered as the date.” “The final decision on the actual date of withdrawal corresponds to the NATO council,” he clarified, stressing that it is necessary to examine “challenges” and “consequences.”
Until this Wednesday, the previous known deadline was the one set by the Defense Minister herself, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who set the limit in mid-August. With 1,100 troops, Germany represents the second largest contingent in NATO, behind only the United States.
Biden arrived at the White House in January with a pledge signed by his predecessor, Donald Trump, that US troops must leave Afghanistan by May 1. However, after recognizing for weeks that meeting that deadline would be difficult, he decided to postpone the date and make it coincide with the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11
On the other hand, the German Government has given the green light to the extension of the deployments in Mali, under the umbrella of the UN (MINUSMA) and the European Union (EUTM). Parliament has yet to approve this decision, which implies a maximum of 1,100 military personnel for MINUSMA and up to 600 – 150 more than currently – for EUTM.
