Without The US, Arab Offices Mention Afghanistan’s Geopolitical Struggle Involves Only China, Russia To Iran

Evacuation of US troops from Afghanistan. (Twitter/@DeptofDefense)

JAKARTA - The United States' chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan raises questions for its Arab allies in the Middle East whether they can continue to depend on Washington or not.

US allies fear the return of the Taliban and the vacuum left by the chaotic Western withdrawal will allow insurgents like Al Qaeda to gain a foothold in Afghanistan, twenty years after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

"Afghanistan is an earthquake, a devastating earthquake, a devastating earthquake and this will stay with us for a very, very long time," the Gulf Arab official said on condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivity.

"Can we really rely on America's security umbrella for the next 20 years? I think it's very problematic now, really very problematic," he continued.

The United States' Gulf Arab allies found Washington's foreign policy seemingly oscillating with a 180-degree shift, problematic, and fears militants would gain a foothold in Afghanistan, the official said.

He further said the US withdrawal had sent a message to militants around the world that all they had to do was continue their struggle.

"We don't know how this Afghan regime will change, we think it's most likely the same Taliban. A little more world-savvy, but not much," the official continued.

He said if there was a geopolitical struggle over Afghanistan, it would be between China and Pakistan on the one hand, with Russia, Iran, and India on the other. The United States, the official said, would not be part of the struggle.

"If there is a geopolitical struggle in Afghanistan, we will see Pakistan and China on the one hand and we will see India, Iran, and Russia on the other," he said.

"And I don't think America will be part of the geopolitical struggle over Afghanistan," the official concluded.