President Joe Biden vowed Friday to get all Americans and Afghan allies out of Afghanistan and took questions from White House repo...
President Joe Biden vowed Friday to get all Americans and Afghan allies out of Afghanistan and took questions from White House reporters - on a pre-approved list - for the first time in nine days.
'Let me be clear, any American who wants to come home, we will get you home,' Biden pledged during the speech he started 50 minutes late where he stumbled over answers.
The president made the promise to 'mobilize every force necessary' despite admitting he doesn't know how many Americans were left and he 'cannot promise what the final outcome will be'.
He also said allies around the world have not questioned US credibility over the chaotic Kabul evacuation, insisted Al Qaeda is gone from Afghanistan and claimed there has been 'no indication' the Taliban has blocked Americans from reaching the airport.
NATO has begged the Biden administration to keep a troop presence on the ground for as long as possible, the Pentagon said just minutes later that Al Qaeda is present in parts of Afghanistan and there are multiple reports insurgents are using checkpoints to block safe passage to the airport.
After taking questions, Biden then walked out while reporters shouted demands at him including one who asked: 'Why do you continue to trust the Taliban?'
Minutes after Biden said the mission to destroy Al Qaeda in Afghanistan was a success and that he knew of no circumstances where Americans had been unable to reach Kabul airport, he was flatly contradicted by the Pentagon.
Yes, Al Qaeda remains present in Afghanistan, said Department of Defense spokesman John Kirby during a briefing, and yes, he was aware of reports of Americans being beaten by the Taliban as they tried to reach safety.
The contradiction will raise further doubt about whether Biden is in control of the White House messaging operation, let alone the chaotic effort to bring Americans home.
President Joe Biden vowed Friday to get all Americans and Afghan allies out of Afghanistan and took questions from White House reporters - on a pre-approved list - for the first time in nine days. 'Let me be clear, any American who wants to come home, we will get you home,' Biden pledged during the speech he started 50 minutes late where he stumbled over answers.
Afghans gather on a roadside near the military part of the airport in Kabul Friday
UK coalition forces, Turkish coalition forces, and U.S. Marines assist a child during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Friday
During the Q&A portion, Biden was asked if he was also committed to get out the Afghans who supported the U.S. war effort, with thousands still stranded on the ground because of the drawn out visa process and the delay in getting them evacuated.
'Yes, we're making the same commitment. There's noone more important than bringing American citizens out, I acknowledge that, but they're equally important almost is all those [special immigrant visas], as we call them, who in fact helped us - they're translators, they went into battle for us, they were part of the operation,' Biden answered.
He also said the U.S. was trying to get out Afghans working at non-governmental organizations, women's organizations, and others.
'This is one of the largest difficult airlifts in history and the only country in the world capable of projecting this much power on the far side of the world with this degree of precision is the United States of America,' Biden acknowledged.
He insisted that the chaotic takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban, leading to disarray at Kabul's airport as westerners and Afghans flee, did not taint the U.S.'s global reputation.
'I have seen no question of our credibility of our allies from around the world,' he said.
'There will be plenty of time to criticize and second guess when this operation is over, but now, now I'm focused on getting this job done,' Biden added.
The president talked about conversations he had with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron.
'We all agreed that will convene the G7 meeting next week. A group of the world's leading democracies. So that together we can coordinate our mutual approach, our united approach, moving forward,' Biden said.
While dismissing a question about Afghans falling from aircraft posed Wednesday by ABC News' George Stephanopoulos - the one sit-down he did with press all week - on Friday Biden finally addressed the visuals.
'The past week has been heartbreaking. We've seen gut-wrenching images of panicked people acting out of shear desperation,' he said. 'It's completely understandable, they're frightened, they're sad.'
'I don't think anyone, anyone of us can see these pictures and not see that pain on a human level,' he added.
Biden gave a status report on the evacuation, explaining why reporters on the ground saw no flights leave Kabul for a number of hours.
'We paused flights in Kabul a few hours this morning to make sure we could process the arriving evacuees at the transit points,' Biden said. 'But our commander in Kabul has already given the order for outbound flights to resume. Even with the pause, we moved out 5,700 evacuees yesterday.'
Biden also said allies around the world have not questioned US credibility over the chaotic Kabul evacuation, insisted Al Qaeda is gone from Afghanistan and claimed there has been 'no indication' the Taliban has blocked Americans from reaching the airport
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