Blinken says US withdrawal from Afghanistan will concentrate the minds of 'free riders' in the region
CNN
Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CNN on Tuesday that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan will concentrate the minds of "free riders" in the region about their interests in keeping the country stable.
Blinken spoke with CNN's Jake Tapper, who asked him to respond to concerns that President Joe Biden's plans to withdraw US forces from the country by September 11 could create a vacuum that leads to civil war or another Taliban takeover. "That is certainly a possible scenario," Blinken said, adding that "no one has an interest in renewed civil war in Afghanistan, certainly the Afghan people don't. Neither the Afghan government or the Taliban do, none of Afghanistan's neighbors do, neighbors and other countries in the region that have basically been free riders for the last 20 years, as we've been engaged there with our NATO allies and partners."
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