United States President Joe Biden said that a withdrawal of all American troops from Afghanistan by May 1, as provided for in a deal with the Taliban, was possible but "
difficult
".
"
It can happen, but it is difficult,
" he said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday by the American channel ABC, criticizing the agreement reached by his predecessor Donald Trump with the rebels.
Read also: Biden unveils his peace plan for Afghanistan
"
I am in the process of making the decision on the date of their departure,
" he added, specifying that the announcement of this decision should not be too late, after consultation with Washington's allies and the Afghan government.
"
The point is that the deal made by the former president was not negotiated very solidly,
" said Joe Biden.
He also claimed that the absence of a traditional transition between the Trump administration and his from November to January had prevented him from having "
access to this information
", particularly on the content of the US-Taliban agreement. , delaying the process.
The United States concluded a historic agreement with the Taliban in February 2020, which provides for the withdrawal of all American soldiers by May 1 in exchange for security guarantees and the opening of unprecedented direct negotiations between the insurgents and the Kabul authorities.
Donald Trump respected the withdrawal schedule until his departure from the White House, and only 2,500 American soldiers remain in Afghanistan, where Washington launched its intervention in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
But the inter-Afghan negotiations that opened in September are stalling, and violence still rages on the ground.
As for the Taliban's commitment to permanently sever ties with jihadist groups like Al-Qaeda, the Biden administration recently felt it was not being held.
American diplomats have therefore launched initiatives to try to relaunch the peace process.
