‘America is back’ home in ignominy

The scenes at the Kabul airport are heartwrenching. The great Western retreat from Afghanistan is panicked, messy, graceless. Not just the Western nationals remaining in the war-torn country that just fell back under the Taliban control, and the at-risk Afghans wanting desperately to flee their homeland, even United States President Joe Biden has no idea how things will play out.

Let alone the worried leaders of US allies who ordered their countries’ troops into the “graveyard of empires” two decades ago following Washington’s lead.

Since the US president has turned down the other G7 leaders’ plea for keeping US military presence at the Kabul airport beyond the Aug 31 deadline, and the Taliban have also said it will accept “no extensions” to the deadline, things could get uglier, messier in the next few days.

Before the moment of truth befalls on Tuesday, these days could be as grueling to Biden as to those vying for a way out.

Despite Biden’s argument that the pullout is something he inherited from an incompetent predecessor, there is no excuse for the disastrous way the drawdown is being implemented. As commanderhe can’t escape blame for at least some of the errors in judgment and decision-making.

But the damage to Biden’s personal political career will be negligible compared with the damage that has been done to the US’ image as a trustworthy, reliable ally and partner.

Although his and the previous US administration are worth credit for finally moving to stop the bleeding from an open wound, the way the withdrawal has been conducted is irresponsible and contrary to the US’ claimed commitment to its international obligations, to the people of Afghanistan, its allies, and to the international community as a whole.

The US president’s insistence on honoring the end-of-the-month deadline, resulting from fear of terrorist attacks, may be a sign of personal weakness or the decline of US might and global leadership. But it will define the America that Biden said “is back”.

The America Biden has brought back to the world stage under the banner of multilateralism is no longer the liberal internationalist the international community was accustomed to. It no doubt is interested in working with allies and partners on matters of common concern, but, as was evident at the latest G7 virtual summit, it is decidedly more self-centered.

While Biden’s approach to the broader spectrum of international affairs remains behind a veil of mystery, US allies and partners may be the first to re-examine their approach to Biden’s America.