US President Joe Biden spoke with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan about the ongoing drawdown of US civilian personnel from Afghanistan, the White House said.
Due to mounting offensive by the Taliban, the terrorist group has managed to get hold of half of the country's 34 provincial capitals and now control roughly two-thirds of Afghanistan, with the complete pullback of foreign troops just two weeks away.
As the security situation worsens in the country, 3,000 additional troops are en route to Afghanistan to assist with evacuation as the Taliban advances on Kabul.
"Today President Biden spoke with Secretary Blinken, Secretary Austin, and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan about the ongoing efforts to safely draw down the civilian footprint in Afghanistan," the White House tweeted on Friday.
Earlier on Friday, Defense Department spokesperson John Kirby said that the US does not expect to have more than 1,000 troops remaining in the country to support the diplomatic mission once the evacuation mission has been complete.
The spokesperson added that the Taliban appear to be trying to "isolate" Kabul in an attempt to get the city to surrender with relatively little bloodshed, like they did with many provincial capitals in the country.
As the Taliban races to take control of Afghanistan and the terrorist group literally on the doorstep of Kabul, the US embassy in the capital city of the war-torn country is scrambling to destroy its classified documents and evacuate American citizens.
Meanwhile, the Kabul embassy staff has begun destroying classified documents and equipment. An internal memo calls for the disposal of the American flag or items that could be used for propaganda purposes, The Washington Post reported.
Painting a grim picture of things to come in Afghanistan, one State Department official who works on security issues said that "the whole thing is about to go bad."
( With inputs from ANI )
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