France said on Monday that “extra time” was needed to evacuate endangered people from Afghanistan, the day after President Joe Biden’s hinted at the possibility of an American presence at Kabul airport after August 31.
“We are concerned about the deadline set by the United States for August 31. We need more time to complete our current operations,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters who accompanied her at Al-Tafra Air Force Base 104, 30 kilometers from Abu. In Tabi, the French Air Force has set up an air transport to Kabul.
During the visit, the Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Barley, was accompanied by the diplomatic entourage of France, which “sheltered nearly 1,200 people” from August 17 to 22, including “almost a hundred French nationals,” nearly a thousand Afghans and dozens of EU workers from the European Union. Dozens of foreigners.
Mr Le Drian said the “main concern” was the “access” to the infrastructure when the situation at Kabul airport was chaotic – with deadly shootings reported on Monday.
“This is done in small quantities”. “We need to further enhance our coordination domestically with the United States and our allies there,” he stressed.
Further details on the situation at Kabul Airport were provided by the French Ambassador to Kabul, David Martin, via video conference with the two ministers.
“By the time I speak to you, all three doors (of the airport) are closed”, Mr. Up to “80 people”.
Regarding these three entrances to the airport, he said, “The north gate (closed) is 30 hours. Closing the three doors will motivate us to find other ways, ”the diplomat said.
– “Planning” –
Referring to the evictions, Florence Barley told reporters who had previously accompanied her that French officials “could not wait until August 15 to arrange themselves.”
“We facilitated the departure of our countrymen and many Afghans who have been working for us for months. We planned the flight before the fall of Kabul,” he argued.
During their brief visit to the United Arab Emirates, Ms. Barley and Mr. Le Trian was to meet with “diplomats, military, police and all personnel contributing to the evacuation of all difficult personnel. From Kabul,” according to a joint statement from their ministries.
Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Saeed Al-Nahyan welcomed them as the true leader of the federation.
August 31 is the deadline for the US administration to finally withdraw its troops from Afghanistan.
However, the schedule is increasingly considered unacceptable by U.S. allies and did not extend the presence of U.S. soldiers overseeing President Joe Biden’s evacuation operations at the airport on Sunday.
“There are ongoing discussions between us and the military about the extension. We hope it will not be extended, but the status of the ‘T’ process will be discussed, the exit, he said.
France has been using al-Tafra’s military base as a “hub” to contribute to the evictions, which Mr Biden described as “one of the hardest in history”, and its military presence in the Gulf since 2009.
In all, 11 rounds were made by Paris between Kabul and Abu Dhabi until Sunday evening, with the 12th round taking place on Monday, French officials said.