Afghanistan envoy denounces quick military pullout; says 'lost trust in US President'

As a month completes after the US troops' pullout that prompted the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan's ambassador to the US Adela Raz in an interview, said that the war-torn country's citizens are unlikely to trust any US President. In an exclusive interview with Axios, which was her first televised appearance after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Raz exchanged views on a wide range of topics. 

During the interview, Adela Raz noted that she is not quick to fully believe or trust the United States. According to her, a similar sentiment is carried by several Afghans who think they were abandoned by US President Joe Biden’s administration. Raz said “No, sorry - I trust and believe the people. I have lost some trust in US policies, and probably government policies,” and added that Afghan nationals are unlikely to trust in the United States anytime “soon.”

The Afghan ambassador to the US in a separate interview stressed that she is grateful for the sacrifices that US troops made while stationed in Afghanistan for around two decades after they first arrived in the war-ravaged country. When asked if she views the United States as the leader of the free world, Raz said that she would “probably” either question the remark or laugh it away.

Raz said in the televised interview that the US “was engaged in building [a democracy] in Afghanistan, and the people believed in it, and fought for it, but when the negotiations arrived with the Taliban, that was not the priority to be negotiated.” The Afghan envoy also said that she does not think the Biden administration cares about the fate of women and girls in Afghanistan. In the interview, she recalled US President and US army’s commander-in-chief’s remarks that the US could not be the “police of the world.”

Raz regrets motivating women to work for women

Raz, who created history on becoming Afghanistan’s first female ambassador when she acquire the post, said that she feels guilty for motivating Afghan women to believe in a new future of the country and serve with her in the government. In the same interview, Raz expressed guilt for promoting people to stay in Afghanistan. While choking up, Raz said, “One of them was a young woman that was assassinated. She was a human rights advocate.”

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