July 26, 2021

Biden, pulling combat forces from Iraq, seeks to end the post-9/11 era

Source: The Washington Post

Journalist: Anne Gearan

President Biden has announced the full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. He has started transferring prisoners from Guantánamo Bay in hopes of eventually shutting down the prison. And on Monday, he will welcome Iraq’s prime minister to the White House for an expected announcement that U.S. combat forces will leave that country within months.

The moves reflect what is emerging as an unmistakable pillar of Biden’s foreign policy: seeking to push America past the post-9/11 phase of its history, ending 20 years of relentless focus on the Middle East and terrorism rather than threats like China and cyberattacks. The United States needs to “fight the battles for the next 20 years, not the last 20,” Biden has said.

Read the full story and more from The Washington Post.

Author

  • Elisa Catalano Ewers

    Former Adjunct Senior Fellow, Middle East Security Program

    Elisa Ewers is a Former Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Middle East Security program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), with 20 years of experience in U.S. natio...