2 - White House News in Chinese (weebly.com)
US troops pulled out of a pivotal air base in Afghanistan after nearly 20 years, a major step toward total withdrawal
Jul. 4 - US troops have departed the military air base at Bagram, the most significant step to date toward the complete American military withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Control of Bagram Airfield, which was central to US operations against the Taliban and Al Qaeda, has been ceded to the Afghan National Security and Defense Forces, The Associated Press reported Friday, citing US officials.
The base was captured during the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan almost 20 years ago and had been continuously occupied by US forces until this week.
The move is a clear step toward President Joe Biden's aim to complete the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan by September 11, the 20th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks.
At the time of Biden's April announcement of the timeline, there were about 3,500 US troops in the country, according to The New York Times. As many as 1,000 US troops are expected to remain in the country to guard the US Embassy in the capital, Kabul, CNN reported.
Most of the 7,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan have already left, the AP said.
The withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan began under President Donald Trump, who cut a deal with Taliban forces in February 2020 under which all troops were to leave by May 1. The US missed that deadline.
—lyse doucet (@bbclysedoucet) July 2, 2021
On June 25, Biden said during a meeting at the White House with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that it was time for Afghanistan to cut its own path.
"Afghans are going to have to decide their future, what they want," Biden said. "The senseless violence has to stop."
With the impending withdrawal of US troops comes fears that Afghanistan will sink into civil war, as the Taliban have made substantial territorial gains in recent months.
Deborah Lyons, the UN envoy for Afghanistan, said on June 22 that the Taliban had taken control of 50 of the country's 370 districts since May, Reuters reported.
Gen. Austin S. Miller, the top US general in Afghanistan, said Tuesday that he was concerned the situation could deteriorate further.
"A civil war is certainly a path that can be visualized if this continues on the trajectory it's on right now, that should be of concern to the world," Miller told the AP. source from
Related Article:
US vacates key Afghan base; pullout target now ‘late August’
Date published on March 5, 2020
Deborah Lyons Appointed as Head of UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has announced the appointment of Deborah Lyons of Canada as his new Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
Ms. Lyons succeeds Tadamichi Yamamoto of Japan, who has served in this critical role since 2016.
UN in a press release said, “The Secretary-General is grateful for Mr. Yamamoto’s important contribution and service to UNAMA since taking up his role as Deputy Special Representative in 2014 and then Special Representative.”
Ms. Lyons is a diplomat with 21 years of professional experience in political affairs, international cooperation and economic development.
Most recently, she served as Ambassador of Canada to Israel, and from 2013 to 2016, as Ambassador to Afghanistan. source from
Jul. 3 - In a letter signed by prominent leaders and individuals worldwide, friends and supporters of Afghanistan urged NATO and the European Union that as U.S. and NATO forces withdraw from Afghanistan, “we must not abandon the Afghan people and their democratic republic.”
The letter signed by former foreign ministers, former ambassadors to Afghanistan, diplomats, along with a range of civil society groups and leaders states that while NATO armed forces are leaving Afghanistan, “it is the obligation of all NATO and European countries to continue to strongly stand by our Afghan partners.” The letter urges NATO and the EU to continue the financial support to the Afghan state, protect the human rights of Afghan women and girls, and continue to provide “robust financial” support to the Afghan national security forces... more
An international naval exercise codenamed Sea Breeze-2021 is being held in the Black Sea with NATO countries and Ukraine taking part
July 3 - The naval aviation of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, jointly with the Southern Military District air forces, carried out training flights above the Black Sea amid the Sea Breeze 2021 exercises of NATO and its partners in the region, the Black Sea fleet’s press service said in a statement on Saturday.
"Plane crews of the Black Sea fleet’s naval aviation and air defense units, jointly with the Southern Military District’s aviation, carried out training flights above the Black Sea, practicing missile and bomb attacks on vessels of a notional enemy. The Black Sea fleet’s naval aviation was represented by Su-30SM multirole fighter jets and Su-24M front-line bombers, the Southern Military District - by Su-34 fighter bombers and Su-27 air superiority fighter jets," the statement says.
As part of the exercises, a Be-12 amphibious aircraft carried out target reconnaissance in the Black Sea. A notional enemy’s naval task force was imitated by two large landing ships, the Saratov and the Orsk.
At the moment, an international naval exercise codenamed Sea Breeze-2021 is being held in the Black Sea with NATO countries and Ukraine taking part. This largest naval exercise in more than 20 years will last till July 10. The drills are expected to involve about 4,000 personnel, 40 warships, boats and auxiliary vessels and over 100 vehicles, including armored ones. source from
Jul 3, 2021
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