Tony Blair criticized the tactics of the Western Allies. (Representative)
London, United Kingdom:
Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, who led Britain to war in Afghanistan with the United States in 2001, on Saturday denounced his “abandonment” of the country as “dangerous” and “unnecessary”.
In his first public comment on the crisis since the fall of the Afghan government last weekend, Blair used a broad article published on his foundation’s website to heavily criticize Western actions.
Blair wrote, “The abandonment of Afghanistan and its people is tragic, dangerous, unnecessary, not in their interest and not in our interest.”
“Following the decision to return Afghanistan to the same group from which the 9/11 massacre took place, and in a way that almost seems designed to parade our humiliation, the question is which allies and enemies alike.” Present: Has the West lost its strategic will?
The former UK prime minister, a controversial figure in Britain and abroad over his strong support for US-led military action in both Afghanistan and then Iraq, argued that the current strategy of the Western allies would harm them in the long run.
“The world is now uncertain where the West stands because it is so clear that this decision to withdraw from Afghanistan was politically motivated, not grand strategy,” Blair said.
He continued: “We did it with every jihadist group around the world.
“Russia, China and Iran will see and benefit. One will clearly regard the commitments made by Western leaders as a destabilizing currency.”
One of Britain’s longest-serving leaders in power for a decade from 1997, Blair served as former US President George W. Bush, later during the so-called War on Terrorism.
His steadfast support for increasingly unpopular military interventions in the Middle East hurt Blair greatly, and he was seen as a key factor in handing over power to his successor, Gordon Brown, in 2007.
In his article, Blair stressed that the West’s withdrawal from Afghanistan would prompt allies and opponents to ask whether it is in an “epoch-changing retreat?”
He said the Western Coalition should “give a real demonstration that we are not”, setting out practical steps to engage with the Taliban who have seized power in the country.
In addition, he also called for a strategic rethink of how the West addresses “radical Islam” while launching a limited defense of Western interventionism.
“We have learned the dangers of intervention in Afghanistan, Iraq and indeed Libya the way we intervened. But non-intervention is also a policy with consequences,” Blair said.
“What is absurd is to believe that the election is between what we did in the first decade after 9/11 and the retreat we see now.”
Blair’s remarks come at a time when current Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing severe criticism for his handling of the crisis, including that Britain has been too weak to influence events.
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