It was a chaotic Monday in Kabul.
Thousands of people have flocked to the airport today in an attempt to flee their country from the hands of the Taliban.
France has decided to move its embassy there for security reasons.
Countries are trying to evacuate their nationals but all flights are currently on hold as the situation quickly turned to chaos.
Read alsoFollow the latest developments in Afghanistan in our dedicated live
It is in this context that Emmanuel Macron spoke this Monday evening.
"A historic turning point is at work in Afghanistan," he assured from the outset.
After a 20-year war, after the American decision to withdraw, the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, fell within hours, without resistance.
The Head of State recalls that France was engaged militarily from 2001 to 2014 with one objective: to fight the terrorist threat.
"In Afghanistan, our fight was fair", then defended Emmanuel Macron, recalling that the stake was to defend international stability.
The Head of State made a point of addressing those who fought and the families of the 90 soldiers who died in the theater of operations.
"This fight that France led was useful and was our honor".
"Put our compatriots to safety"
It was written that the question of the repatriation of the French would be at the heart of the presidential intervention.
“The absolute urgency is to bring our compatriots to safety.
Our nationals have been gradually evacuated in recent weeks as a preventive measure, he adds.
All Afghan employees of French structures who were threatened were received and taken care of.
Operations have been carried out for several years to welcome Afghan personnel who have worked with France.
"
Several dozen people are still there, according to the President of the Republic.
On Monday, the Apagan military operation began with the takeoff of two Air Force transport planes, a C130 and an A400M, bound for a base in the United Arab Emirates.
They must arrive on site in the next few hours.
Emmanuel Macron claims to have exchanged with Boris Johnson to implement joint actions. Afghanistan must not once again become a haven for terrorism. The French head of state calls for concerted action by the UN Security Council.
Several political leaders wanted to push the President of the Republic on the issue of immigration. This was notably the case with Marine Le Pen and the president of the Hauts-de-France region and presidential candidate Xavier Bertrand. The Afghan crisis will continue in the form of a new wave of migration to Europe, the latter wrote on Twitter, calling for a European response. "We must protect ourselves from significant migratory flows," replied Emmanuel Macron. On this subject, he referred to action taken with Germany and the Europeans to control these flows.
“We must continue to defend our principles, our values,” he continues. Afghan women have the right to live in freedom. If the fate of Afghanistan is in his hands, we will stand with the Afghans. This is the first time in months that the President of the Republic has spoken on a subject other than the health crisis. His intervention took place a few hours after the meeting of a Defense Council dedicated to the situation in the country.
