Withdrawal from Afghanistan

Defence Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 9 Sep 2021 Closed: 11 Dec 2023 Parliament page
The Defence Committee is inquiring into developments following the US agreement with the Taliban in February 2020 to withdraw NATO troops from Afghanistan (the Doha Agreement), which was endorsed by the NATO decision of March 2020, and will look at the planning for and execution of withdrawal of UK Armed … Read more
3 Recommendations
7 Conclusions
1 Report
3 Oral sessions
3 Events
Activity timeline 5 events
28 Apr
2023
Report published
10 Feb
2023
Report published
23 Nov
2021
Oral evidence
16 Nov
2021
Oral evidence
26 Oct
2021
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
23 Nov 2021
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General David Petraeus (ret.), Commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan (2010-11) Jeff Harrison · Combat Stress Sarah Jones · Help for Heroes
16 Nov 2021
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Panel 1; Panel 2
Brigadier (ret.) Ben Barry · International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Dr Jack Watling · Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) Dr Neelam Raina · Afghan Solidarity Coalition Dr Sara de Jong · The Sulha Alliance Peter Gordon-Finlayson · The Sulha Alliance Professor Brad Blitz · Afghan Solidarity Coalition
26 Oct 2021
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Rt Hon Ben Wallace MP · Ministry of Defence
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afghanistan HC 725 10 Feb 2023 10 Response document linked
Recommendations & Conclusions
10 results
1 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
The signing of the Doha Agreement served domestic US Administration priorities, by enabling the withdrawal...
The signing of the Doha Agreement served domestic US Administration priorities, by enabling the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan to a defined schedule. The absence of the United Kingdom, other allies and the Afghan Government from the negotiating table … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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2 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
Although the Defence Secretary assured us that he had attempted to find a way to...
Although the Defence Secretary assured us that he had attempted to find a way to retain a military presence in Afghanistan without the US, we recognise how difficult this would have been in practice. This shows the limits of NATO’s … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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3 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
Optimism bias and failures in intelligence and analysis meant that the rapid collapse of the...
Optimism bias and failures in intelligence and analysis meant that the rapid collapse of the Afghan Government was a greater surprise to the military establishment than it might have been.
Ministry of Defence
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4 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
If the initial goal of the NATO deployment was mainly to prevent terrorist attacks against...
If the initial goal of the NATO deployment was mainly to prevent terrorist attacks against Western nations originating in Afghanistan, current evidence suggests that while there have been no such recent attacks to date, Afghanistan is once again becoming a … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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5 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
Technically, NATO forces were not defeated in Afghanistan.
Technically, NATO forces were not defeated in Afghanistan. However, this must not prevent the recognition that the end of the NATO mission has been severely detrimental both to the people of Afghanistan and to the security of the region, as … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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6 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
We welcome the award of medals to Armed Forces personnel who served on Operation PITTING,...
We welcome the award of medals to Armed Forces personnel who served on Operation PITTING, and recognise the success of the military operation element of the evacuation from Afghanistan—though this must not mask the wider context that the operation was … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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7 Conclusion
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
The same praise, however, cannot be given to the efforts of the UK Government’s civilian...
The same praise, however, cannot be given to the efforts of the UK Government’s civilian operations in support of the evacuation. Our colleagues on the Foreign Affairs Committee have taken extensive evidence and reached persuasive findings in these areas. While … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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8 Recommendation
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
We recognise the ongoing efforts of the UK Government and of organisations including the Afghan...
We recognise the ongoing efforts of the UK Government and of organisations including the Afghan Solidarity Coalition and the Sulha Alliance to evacuate eligible Afghans remaining in Afghanistan or in third countries. It is concerning, however, that, according to the … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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9 Recommendation
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
The withdrawal from Afghanistan and end of the UK’s twenty-year military involvement in the country...
The withdrawal from Afghanistan and end of the UK’s twenty-year military involvement in the country has understandably had a negative impact on veterans’ mental health. This has increased demand on services provided by organisations such as Combat Stress and Help … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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10 Recommendation
Fifth Report - Withdrawal from Afg…
The UK contribution to the war in Afghanistan took the lives of 457 UK armed...
The UK contribution to the war in Afghanistan took the lives of 457 UK armed forces personnel and injured thousands more, and cost more than £27 billion. The evacuation from Afghanistan in August 2021 resulted in 15,000 people being brought … Read more
Ministry of Defence
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