(ANSA) - SYDNEY, MAY 25 - Australia will close its embassy in Afghanistan on Friday. Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced today amid growing fears for security in the capital Kabul due to the withdrawal of US troops from the Asian country.
Morrison said on May 28 the diplomatic seat will close "in light of the imminent international military withdrawal from Afghanistan" and will reopen "when circumstances permit". "Australia expects this measure to be temporary and we will resume a permanent presence in Kabul when circumstances permit," Morrison said. Australian soldiers will also leave Afghanistan. In recent years, dozens of thousands of them have been used, at a cost of several billion dollars.
Once this small contingent is recalled and the US forces are gone, "the security climate will be increasingly uncertain," noted the Australian premier.
"The government was informed that the security arrangements necessary for a continuous diplomatic presence could not be provided," he explained.
The Americans and all of NATO began a final withdrawal from Afghanistan on May 1, which is to be completed on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The trial was marked by renewed violence between the Italians and the Afghan authorities. Peace negotiations between the Afghan government, which remains weak despite the efforts of its Western allies, and the Taliban insurgents are still at a dead end. (HANDLE).