G7 leaders will hold a virtual meeting for urgent talks on the situation in Afghanistan as US President Joe Biden faces a pressure to extend August 31 deadline to evacuate thousands seeking to flee the country
In this, June 11, 2021 file photo, from left, Italian PM Mario Draghi, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen walk together during the G7 Summit, in Carbis Bay, Cornwall, England.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the host of the Cornwall summit, is now reconvening the leaders for crisis talks on Afghanistan amid widespread unhappiness about Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal. Covid-19, China and climate change dominated the agenda. And expectations for Biden’s impending summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin were at the top of people’s tongues.
“We call on all Afghan parties to reduce violence and agree on steps that enable the successful implementation of a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire and to engage fully with the peace process. In Afghanistan, a sustainable, inclusive political settlement is the only way to achieve a just and durable peace that fits all Afghans,” the leaders said, without a hint of urgency.
On the eve of the meeting, the White House said Biden and Johnson had spoken by phone and “discussed the ongoing efforts by our diplomatic and military personnel to evacuate their citizens, local staff, and other vulnerable Afghans” as well as “the importance of close coordination with allies and partners in managing the current situation and forging a common approach to Afghanistan policy.”
White House aides have said they think the meeting could grow contentious, as US allies have looked on with disapproval at the tumultuous American drawdown.'Special relationship'
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