Biden administration promises “safe passage” for Americans in Afghanistan after withdrawal deadline

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“August 31 is not a cliff. After August 31, we believe we have a substantial lever to keep the Taliban in their commitments to allow safe passage for U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, and to Afghan allies who have travel documentation to come to the United States. United States, “Sullivan told CNN’s Jake Tapper about” State of the Union. ” “We will use this leverage to the fullest and work with the rest of the international community to ensure that the Taliban do not falter in these commitments.”

“We are all committed to ensuring that our citizens, nationals and residents, employees, Afghans who have worked with us and those at risk can continue to travel freely to destinations outside Afghanistan,” the statement said in part.

About 250 Americans trying to leave Afghanistan remain in the country, according to new figures from a State Department spokesman on Sunday. About 50 evacuations have taken place over the last day, bringing the total number of American citizens evacuated to 5,500.

“Our field team continues to coordinate 24-hour assistance for this group, taking into account the current security situation,” the State Department spokesman said in a statement.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an interview with ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that the Biden administration is still working to evacuate U.S. citizens from Afghanistan who have told the U.S. they want to leave. . He also said the United States will not have a diplomatic presence in the country after Tuesday, adding that the administration will remain diplomatically committed to the region, but that the reopening of the embassy in Kabul will depend on the Taliban’s behavior in the coming weeks and months “.

“We are also working very closely with dozens of similarly located countries that have a strong interest in making sure people can continue to have freedom of travel to leave Afghanistan if they decide to,” he said. “And working closely with these countries, we will find ways to ensure that freedom of travel is meaningful.”

Earlier Sunday, the White House had announced that some 2,900 people had been evacuated from Kabul from 3 a.m. Saturday to 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon. These evacuations were carried out by 32 U.S. military flights carrying approximately 2,200 evacuees and nine coalition flights carrying 700 people.

The U.S. has evacuated or facilitated the evacuation of some 111,900 people in general since Aug. 14, according to a White House official.

This story has been updated with other developments.

CNN’s Jason Hoffman and Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.

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