Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that the Biden administration is looking at the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan under President Joe Biden, including the fatal Kabul Airport bombing that saw the death of 13 American service members.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper, Blinken said, “We’re determined as an administration to make sure that, for the entire duration of the war, including Abbey Gate, that we draw the lessons that we need to draw from it and act accordingly, and we will, and we are.”
PENCE TESTS APPETITE FOR OLD-SCHOOL CONSERVATISM IN TRUMP-ERA POPULIST GOP
While he expressed his condolences for the families of the service members, as well as his reverence for their heroism, he reiterated that “we did the right thing.”
“But of course, we will look very hard at everything — every aspect of the decisions that we made to make sure that we get it right every time going forward and that everyone who is involved feels that the appropriate justice has been done to the sacrifice of their loved ones,” he said.
Blinken added, “I know the sacrifice of so many over the years, and I know that because President Biden ended America’s longest war, that won’t be the case going forward — that we will not, as I said, be sending another generation of Americans to fight and die there.”
Last month, the second anniversary of the Kabul Airport bombing was commemorated. Along with 13 American service members, over 100 Afghan civilians died.
Biden has received criticism over the attack, as some argue that it was due to a lack of control over the U.S. exit from Afghanistan. On the Aug. 26 anniversary, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) reiterated the need for accountability.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
He further noted that while families deal with remaining grief from losing their loved ones, “they still have many questions—too many—left unanswered as to how this happened. ”
“That is why I’m conducting the investigation into the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the resulting emergency evacuation. Our Gold Star families and our veterans deserve answers. And I will leave no stone unturned to get them answers — and accountability,” he added.
