@SenatorMenendez pushing Special envoy Khalilzad on Taliban's stated goal of restoring an Islamic emirate. Khalilzad saying the Taliban might be dissuaded by the opposition of fellow Afghans.
.@MittRomney asks has the Taliban upheld the Feb 2020 Doha agreement. Khalilzad says the Taliban has honored the agreement on not attacking US forces.
Khalilzad says there have been "positive developments" on Taliban commitment to not let the use of Afghan territory for international terrorism, but US policymakers are not satisfied, want to see more.
Khalilzad says the Afghan government will not collapse, he doesn't share the collapse assessment of others.
Khalilzad says I am skeptical of Iran but Iran has expressed support for a negotiated settlement. So has China and Pakistan.
@ChrisCoons how can we ensure that aid programs are effective post-withdrawal as they have not been effective? Khalilzad says Afghans will be watching this hearing...
...and our commitment of support will be conditional; the Taliban also want assistance but aid will have to be conditions-based.
@ChrisCoons asks about China's core interests in Afghanistan. Khalilzad says the Chinese have been satisfied seeing us deal with the terrorism challenge from Afghanistan, which they feel threatened by.
Says some in China feared that we had a plan of permanent stay to counter them, which should not be the case now. Also hopes China will rise to the challenges ahead.
On whether the Taliban will embrace the modern world, Khalilzad says we'll have to see and that Talibs say they don't want to be pariah but we'll have to see. If they don't improve, pariah status might be inevitable.
Khalilzad says there is a concern about what the Talibs will do given their past history, and that we have said if Talibs want delisting, assistance, other forms of recognition, they have to engage better.
Question on advice Khalilzad will give to Senate to maximize leverage over the Taliban and Afghan government. Khalilzad says the key instrument to rely on is conditional assistance, making aid conditional on HR and governance.
Khalilzad says two issues that will be paramount going forward on Afghanistan will be terrorism threats and human rights. And for both goals, conditionality will be critical.
Khalilzad says (I think) in US policy priorities hierarchy counterterrorism will be higher than human rights goals.
Khalilzad says we should be concerned that [human] rights could suffer if the Taliban gains and that diplomatic engagement/support with the US will not be available to the Taliban if they don't respect women's rights and the rights of other Afghans.
Question that if collapse happens, should the US hold back 300 million in additional assistance? Khalilzad says our assistance will be dependant on the behavior of the Afghan government, including one with the Taliban.
@ChrisMurphyCT says Biden's like Obama's instinct is to end the war, move beyond fancy+persuasive military PowerPoints by credentialed generals. Khalilzad says two factors went against stay decision1) US war with Taliban would re-start, which would have required more US forces...
...2) the military balance was changing negatively territorially (in favor of the Taliban).
Khalilzad says some of our analysts engage in worst-case analysis on the Afghan security sector, and that it would be a mistake to dismiss Afghan security forces even if they will face challenges.
A senatorial pop quiz for amb Khalilzad on US troops in the Middle East: how many troops in Kuwait and Qatar? Also, how many US casualties in Afghanistan?
Khalilzad says the reason casualties are low is due to the agreement, which requires us to withdraw, and without the agreement, there would be more.
Question by Senator from Ohio on al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, which is reported by Treasury, DIA, and UN MT. Khalilzad says it is our judgement Taliban have taken several positive steps, which he can speak more about in classified.
@CoryBooker asks how credible are Taliban assurances on al-Qaeda and the problem of no basing agreements in the region for offshore CT. Khalilzad says capabilities will degrade, but efforts are underway for over-the-horizon posture...
...and we would get an adequate warning to respond to new terrorism threats. In the near term, CT capabilities will be based in Gulf but might have something more proximate in the future.
@SenatorTimKain1 asks if the region and Afghanistan's neighbors would be supportive of stability and preventing war in Afghanistan? Khalilzad says he hopes the region has to rise to the occasion and that war in Afghanistan...
...has been a proxy war of regional actors. The region faces a decision of big choice, that there is a consensus that the Taliban taking power militarily will produce bad outcomes for the region.
@SenatorShaheen says I have raised concerns about the inclusion of women in the peace process, that the Biden admin has not sufficiently addressed concerns, and "I want to put a face" on the harm women have experienced (shows photos of 7 women killed by Taliban).
@SenatorShaheen mentions each woman by name and circumstances of their targeting, including Mariam Noorzad who was a midwife and describes the events of her targeting in a hospital. Says we have to do everything in power for the women of Afghanistan.
@SenatorShaheen introduces to the record a declassified internal report on implications of US policy for women of Afghanistan.
Khalilzad says I share the concerns of @SenatorShaheen.
@ChrisVanHollen says Pakistan is the most important player, asks how would you categorize Pakistan's role? Khalilzad says Pakistan has been supportive of our efforts to press the Taliban to reduce violence, negotiate with the Afghan government, join the Turkey conference.
Khalilzad says Pakistan has a special responsibility, we appreciate what Pakistan has done but we are not there yet and we look forward to working with them for negotiating an end.
@ChrisVanHollen says I hope President Biden will call Prime Minister Khan, and that we need to have that dialogue with Pakistan. Khalilzad says dialogue with Pakistan is very important.
Khalilzad says the civilian contractors who service the Afghan military will draw down with the US military.
Khalilzad says we are working on a humanitarian plan, including provisions for more Afghan refugees.
@SenatorMenendez asks about the force sizes of Afghan security forces and the Taliban. Khalilzad says there are less than 100K Taliban fighters.
@SenatorMenendez says we have to wonder for the future why is it that despite having a 4 to 1 force advantage we are worried about the Taliban overrunning the country, and that it is important for broader questions of US strategy.
Khalilzad says he is optimistic Afghan security forces will hold, but that we have to learn lessons on how we have built and equipped the force.
@SenatorMenendez says we need to prepare for worst-case contingencies. end of the hearing. n/n
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