KABUL – Britain is set to relocate its Afghan embassy to Qatar, it emerged after ambassador Bristow arrived in the UK on one of the last British flights to leave the war-raked country.
With the touchdown at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, the mission’s last flight left Kabul airport on Saturday night following an end of a 2-decade long military presence in Afghanistan after the Taliban captured Kabul.
Speaking in a video message on Twitter, the British ambassador said “We have had to leave Afghanistan for now and the embassy will operate from Qatar for the time being, but we will continue to stand by the people of Afghanistan, working on humanitarian, diplomatic, and security work and above all bringing to the UK Afghans and British nationals who still need our support, and we will be putting pressure on the Taliban to allow safe passage for those people”.
We will continue to stand by the Afghan people. We will do all in our power to give the Afghan people the future they deserve. pic.twitter.com/X0VDCmwvdv
— Laurie Bristow (@laurie_bristow) August 29, 2021
However, he mentioned reopening the embassy as soon as possible in wake of protecting the gains of the last 2 decades.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said “British soldiers set foot on Afghan soil 20 years ago aiming to create a ‘brighter future’ for the country and its people. Their departure is a moment to reflect on everything we have sacrificed and everything we have achieved in the last two decades,” he added.
Around 100 countries say they expect Taliban to ensure safe and orderly evacuation after Aug 31
The United Kingdom officially ended its combat role in 2014, but its troops remained in support of NATO forces. According to the figures shared in international media, around 150,000 British servicemen served in the war-torn country while over 450 personnel died since 2001.
