Analysis: Boris Johnson points the finger at Joe Biden over Afghanistan, but must accept some blame

Boris Johnson pointed the figure squarely at Joe Biden over the Afghanistan crisis in a heated Commons session on Wednesday.

Speaking during a recalled Parliament to address the crisis, the Prime Minister made clear his belief the UK Government could not continue its 20-year operation in the country without the US.

He told MPs of the “hard reality” the West could no longer continue a mission “conceived and executed in support of America”.

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While the Prime Minister is right to say the withdrawal decision largely lies with the US, the UK Government has its own share of the blame.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson must take some responsibility for the handling of the crisisPrime Minister Boris Johnson must take some responsibility for the handling of the crisis
Prime Minister Boris Johnson must take some responsibility for the handling of the crisis

It was not Mr Biden who told Mr Johnson and his foreign secretary to go on holiday while the Taliban took over the country.

The trip to a five-star resort in Greece left Dominic Raab “too busy” to make a crucial phone call.

This is on top of denying scholarships to Afghan citizens promised them, or failing to honour obligations to the hundreds of interpreters who helped Britain.

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Boris Johnson accused of ‘dereliction of duty’ as he blames US over Afghanistan ...

The Taliban took most of Afghanistan back in a week, but Parliament needed four days to organise a chat about it.

Now having finally spoken in Parliament, the UK Government has decided to take an additional 20,000 refugees from the country.

However, this will be capped at 5,000 a year, meaning the UK is essentially a call centre, insisting your life is important to us, but can you please hold?

This whole tragedy comes despite Mr Johnson saying just six weeks ago “there is no military path to victory for the Taliban” and they were not “guaranteed the kind of victory that we sometimes read about”.

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Maybe they weren’t, but abandoning those who helped us probably increases their chances.

Now Mr Johnson promised to work on a “clear plan” with the international community, which will come as great relief to the thousands who now face being murdered by the Taliban.

It will hopefully be quicker than his social care plan, promised on July 24, 2019, which remains very much unpublished.

Yet again, those who trusted Britain must wait, while their lives hang in the balance.

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