Guest: Connor Freeman. In this long bonus episode we talk about the fall of Saigon moment in Afghanistan, playing out right now. We recorded this episode less than 48 hours ago but things are changing so rapidly that I added an update at the end of the bonus episode.
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Update: The Taliban has already doubled the number of provincial capitals that they control since we recorded this late Thursday night. The latest unofficial reports have it at 24 as of Saturday evening, August 14th. Biden went to Camp David for the weekend and today he authorized another 2,000 troops to be deployed to Kabul to assist in the evacuation. As we discussed in this episode, on Thursday the Pentagon and State Department announced that 3,000 troops would be deployed to Kabul but they claimed that the embassy would not be closed and that we were not leaving. Two days later, all the mainstream media are talking about evacuation. The Taliban solidified control in the north after they took over what was reported to be a city heavily defended by powerful warlords, Mazar-i-Sharif, the fourth largest city. and with the capture of other areas in the south, they are closing in on Kabul which has reportedly been overwhelmed by Afghans fleeing other areas. The U.S. and other NATO countries are scrambling to get rid of materials from their embassies and evacuate their personnel. The Taliban is in the process of taking areas closer to Kabul. The Afghan government is in a state of chaos and have lost control of about ⅔ of the country. There have been high level personnel changes but Ghani hasn’t stepped down. There has been talk of a transitional government but the Taliban rejected that proposal and continue to call for Ghani to resign. Supposedly ceasefire talks continue in Qatar. Victoria Fontan, professor of peace studies in the American University of Afghanistan, said ““There is a lot of talk in Kabul about the impending independence day on Thursday … Many think that the Taliban are going to go for Kabul this weekend and declare independence,” according to al Jazeera.
Connor Freeman is a writer at the Libertarian Institute, primarily covering foreign policy. He has been featured at Antiwar.com and Counterpunch and the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. He is a frequent guest on the Conflicts of Interest podcast.
FOLLOW Connor at @FreemansMind96 and find his work at The Libetarian Institute, Antiwar.com, The Ron Paul Institute and other media outlets.
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Recorded on August 12, 2021. Music by Fluorescent Grey.
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Next on the Agenda: War With China, Connor Freeman