US Hopes To Strengthen Alliance With NATO Despite Disappointment On Afghanistan - Austin

Strategic alliance between the United States and NATO remains solid, and Washington is eager to strengthen it, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Saturday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th September, 2021) Strategic alliance between the United States and NATO remains solid, and Washington is eager to strengthen it, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Saturday.

"We saw NATO come in to Afghanistan in a major way as one of allies, and that alliance remains strong. Our goal is to continue to strengthen that," Austin said.

Asked about allies' disappointment in the way the war in Afghanistan ended abruptly while many people who hoped to leave were still in Afghanistan, the Pentagon chief said that the US will work to evacuate those individuals and continues its "efforts to help the people who helped us.

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Austin expressed hope that more people will be able to leave Afghanistan in near future.

"We are working hard to make sure that happens," he said.

He also thanked the government of Qatar for its support in evacuation process.

After the Taliban (a terrorist organization banned in Russia) took over Kabul on August 15, hundreds of people rushed to the airport, which resulted in several days of chaos. As foreigners and Afghans who helped foreign forces were striving to leave, the airport was shaken by terrorist attacks organized by a local affiliate of the IS terrorist group (banned in Russia).