Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government Sullivan’s comments came during Tuesday’s White House press briefing, the first public one held by the White House since the Taliban ousted the Afghan government in Kabul over the weekend.
PENTAGON WARNS TALIBAN AGGRESSION AT KABUL AIRPORT WILL BE MET WITH FORCE
“Right now, there is a chaotic situation in Kabul where we don’t even have the establishment of a governing authority,” Sullivan said in response to a question on the subject. “So it’d be really premature to address that question.”
“It’s going to be up to the Taliban to show the rest of the world who they are and how they intend to proceed,” President Joe Biden’s top security adviser continued. “The track record has not been good, but it’s premature to address that question.”
Though ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country prior to Kabul’s fall, Afghanistan’s First Vice President Amrullah Saleh, citing the country’s constitution, declared himself the “caretaker president” Tuesday morning and urged Afghan citizens to resist and fight back against Taliban control.
Clarity: As per d constitution of Afg, in absence, escape, resignation or death of the President the FVP becomes the caretaker President. I am currently inside my country & am the legitimate care taker President. Am reaching out to all leaders to secure their support & consensus.
— Amrullah Saleh (@AmrullahSaleh2) August 17, 2021
Later in Tuesday’s briefing, Sullivan added that continuing to supply the Afghan people with humanitarian aid, something Biden pledged to do beyond the Aug. 31 withdrawal date, would also be contingent on the Taliban’s behavior throughout the evacuation process.
“We will have to take a hard look at how we proceed with any on any basis at all, and as I said to one of your colleagues earlier, it’s premature to answer those questions,” he explained. “That’s something we will have to take a look at after we get through the immediate task of this mission.”
You can watch Tuesday’s press briefing in its entirety below.
