MESOPOTAMIA NEWS : US, Turkish defence ministers to discuss Kabul airport security plan

• Ahval – Jul 07 2021 09:33 Gmt+3 – The United States and Turkey will hold further talks on a plan for the Turkish military to operate and guard Kabul’s main airport following NATO’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said he would discuss the issue with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Wednesday. Turkey is seeking financial, political and logistical backing from its NATO allies to run security at the Hamid Karzai airport, key to the continuing operation of diplomatic missions in Afghanistan after the withdrawal.

“We are in contact with various countries on the issues of taking some political decisions before the U.N. and NATO, reaching an agreement with the Afghan government, and on the other hand, political, financial and logistical support,” Akar told reporters in televised comments in Ankara on Tuesday. “Meanwhile, our meetings with the Americans continue. No final decision has been taken, but discussions continue.”

Akar said the airport must be operational to ensure the Afghan government is not isolated from the world following the NATO withdrawal.

Turkey has over 500 soldiers in Afghanistan, where they have played an important role in securing the airport. Ankara says it has no plans to commit additional troops.

Analysts say that Turkey’s offer may help it repair relations with the United States. The two countries are at loggerheads on issues including Turkey’s purchase of S-400 air defence missiles from Russia and U.S. support for Kurdish militants in Syria.

The U.S. military left Bagram Airfield – its key base in Afghanistan – in the early hours of Friday morning without notifying the Afghans, the BBC and other international media reported on Tuesday.

The withdrawal effectively completes the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan ahead of an official end date of Sept. 11, announced by President Joe Biden earlier this year. U.S. soldiers left behind thousands of civilian vehicles, without keys, and hundreds of armoured vehicles, the Associated Press reported.

The United States invaded Afghanistan in 2001, deposing the Taliban and taking control of the airbase, which was built by the Soviet Union in the 1950s.