WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES – The US House Foreign Affairs Committee has requested President Joe Biden’s National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, to testify before the committee regarding the country’s “chaotic” withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In a letter to Mr. Sullivan on Tuesday, August 27, House Chairman Michael McCaul requested that he appear for public questioning regarding his role in the planning and execution of the withdrawal.
“Over the course of the investigation, the overwhelming weight of witness testimony and documentary evidence has pointed to the National Security Council (NSC) as the nerve center for critical decision making regarding the withdrawal from Afghanistan,” McCaul wrote in the letter.
He requested Sullivan to appear next month and stated that he is prepared to “compel his testimony” if he does not voluntarily appear before the committee.
“Evidence gathered by the Committee in this investigation points to Mr. Sullivan as the principal architect of Afghanistan policy. Accordingly, he has an obligation to appear before Congress and testify fully without raising any claims of executive privilege,” part of the letter reads.
“The families of the fallen U.S. service members, the American public, and our Afghan allies deserve answers that only Mr. Sullivan is equipped to provide,” it adds.
The Republican-led Congress has consistently criticized the Biden Administration for its handling of Afghanistan, especially the chaotic and deadly troop withdrawal in August 2021, which led to the Taliban’s return to power.
Early last year, the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, chaired by McCaul, began an investigation into the country’s military withdrawal from Afghanistan, which he had previously labeled a “mistake of epic proportions” and an “unconditional surrender to the Taliban.”
The committee says that it has conducted 18 transcribed interviews with current and former US officials regarding the country’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, including the attack at Kabul Airport on August 26, 2021, claimed by ISIS-K, which resulted in the deaths of 13 US service members and at least 170 Afghans.
Earlier this month, the committee requested US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to testify, noting that his department was central to the withdrawal and that he was the final decision-maker.
Mr. McCaul previously stated the investigation is essential for providing the American people with the transparency and answers they deserve from the U.S. officials involved in planning and executing the withdrawal.
U.S. lawmakers also argue that, contrary to claims by the State Department, the Taliban continue to maintain ties with regional and international terrorist organizations, commit widespread human rights abuses, and misuse American-provided humanitarian aid.
