NBC’s Richard Engel on End of Afghanistan War: ‘The United States Has Been Humbled Today’
The United States completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan on Monday, thus concluding the longest war in U.S. history. For the first time in 20 years, there are no American soldiers in the country. And just as it was 20 years ago, the Taliban is in charge.
NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel appeared on MSNBC on Monday and was asked by Nicolle Wallace to give his thoughts on General Kenneth McKenzie announcing the end of the war earlier in the day.
“I’m here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of the military mission to evacuate American citizens, third country nationals, and vulnerable Afghans,” the general announced during a Pentagon presser on Monday.
“Well, these are heavy days,” said Engel, speaking from Doha, Qatar. “I don’t know anyway other to describe it. I do not envy him for having had to make that statement, to speak to the American people, but also to speak to others who served in Afghanistan including his own family members and to tell them that we came, we fought and we’re leaving and we’re handing over the country back to the same enemy.”
He continued, “It is a moment of deep humility. The United States has been humbled today. It is another empire that has–-not fallen in Afghanistan but that has stumbled in Afghanistan. The British empire fought in Afghanistan and pulled out in defeat as did the Soviet Union, and now the United States as well.”
Engel said the Trump administration’s deal with the Taliban had “undercut” Afghanistan’s government, as did the Biden administration when it withdrew troops “with very little coordination” with Afghanistan’s military and its government.
“So it was given a first blow by Trump and then a death blow by the Biden administration, and they collapsed and the Taliban moved in,” he said. “And they’re going to be there for a while. They have tremendous amount of weapons. They have tremendous confidence, and who is going to go in now? What power is going to go in and undo them?”
Watch above via MSNBC.
