US News

US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan begins May 1, ends Sept. 11

By
Social Links for Aaron Feis
Published April 14, 2021
Updated April 14, 2021, 5:40 p.m. ET
1 of 7
President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US soldiers from Afghanistan will begin on May 1.
President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US soldiers from Afghanistan will begin on May 1. NY Post Illustration
US Army soldiers protect a wounded comrade from dust and smoke flares after an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast during a patrol near Baraki Barak base in Logar Province in Afghanistan on October 13, 2012.
US Army soldiers protect a wounded comrade from dust and smoke flares after an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast during a patrol near Baraki Barak base in Logar Province in Afghanistan on October 13, 2012. AFP via Getty Images
Advertisement
US Army soldiers detonate IED’s on a nearby road during a dawn operation at Naja-bien village on September 23, 2012.
US Army soldiers detonate IED's on a nearby road during a dawn operation at Naja-bien village on September 23, 2012.AFP via Getty Images
A US Army carry team moves a transfer case with the remains of US Army Maj. Gen. Harold J. Greene from a C-17 cargo plane during a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base August 7, 2014 in Delaware.
A US Army carry team moves a transfer case with the remains of US Army Maj. Gen. Harold J. Greene from a C-17 cargo plane during a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base August 7, 2014 in Delaware. AFP via Getty Images
US Marine Sergeant Anthony Zabala runs to safety as an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explodes in Garmsir district of Helmand Province on July 13, 2009. AFP via Getty Images
Advertisement

The US military will begin a full withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan starting on May 1, and complete the process by the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, President Biden announced Wednesday, saying it was well past time to end America’s “forever war.”

In the 16-minute, midday White House address, Biden said that the sprawling military operation was undertaken with just intentions, but has long since completed its mission.

“We went to Afghanistan in 2001 to root out Al Qaeda, to prevent future terror attacks against the United States planned from Afghanistan,” he said. “Our objective was clear, our cause was just, our NATO partners and allies rallied beside us.

“I said, along with others, we’d follow Osama bin Laden to the gates of hell if need be. That’s exactly what we did. And we got him,” he continued. “That was 10 years ago. … We delivered justice to bin Laden a decade ago, and we’ve stayed in Afghanistan for a decade since.”

US Marines wait for helicopter transport as part of Operation Khanjar at Camp Dwyer in Helmand Province in Afghanistan on July 2, 2009.
Biden announced all U.S. troops will be out of Afghanistan by September 11, 2021. AFP via Getty Images

“I’m now the fourth United States president to preside over American troop presence in Afghanistan, two Republicans and two Democrats,” he said. “I will not pass this responsibility on to a fifth.”

Biden said that now, finally, it was time for the approximately 2,500 American troops still on the ground in Afghanistan to come home — if slightly behind former President Donald Trump’s timeline of a full withdrawal by May 1.

“The United States will begin our final withdrawal — begin it — on May 1 this year,” he said. “We will not conduct a hasty rush to the exit. We will do it responsibly, deliberately and safely. And we will do it in full coordination with our allies and partners, who now have more forces in Afghanistan than we do.

“US troops, as well as forces deployed by our NATO allies and operational partners, will be out of Afghanistan before we mark the 20th anniversary of that heinous attack on September 11.”

Biden said that, prior to formally announcing the move, he spoke on Tuesday with former President George W. Bush, who directed troops into Afghanistan nearly 20 years ago.

“I spoke yesterday with President Bush and informed him of my decision,” said Biden. “While he and I have had many disagreements over policy throughout the years, we’re absolutely united in our respect and support for the valor, courage and integrity of the women and men of the United States armed forces.”

Biden said that he was guided in his decision-making by the memory of his late son, Beau, who served in the Iraq War.

“Throughout this process, my North Star has been remembering what it was like when my late son, Beau, was deployed in Iraq. How proud he was to serve his country, how insistent he was to deploy with his unit, and the impact it had on him and all of us at home.

Biden closed by noting that the operation, while started justly, was “never meant to be a multi-generational undertaking.”

“We were attacked. We went to war with clear goals. We achieved those objectives. Bin Laden is dead, and Al Qaeda is degraded,” he said. “It is time to end the forever war.”