London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Sep 14, 2025

Boris Johnson announces end of UK military mission in Afghanistan

Labour says ‘washing hands’ of conflict now will lead to bloodier war and wider Taliban control
Boris Johnson has announced the end of Britain’s military mission in Afghanistan following a hasty and secretive exit of the last remaining troops 20 years after the post-9/11 invasion that started the “war on terror”.

The prime minister confirmed to MPs that the intervention, which claimed the lives of 457 British soldiers, would end even as the insurgent Taliban were rapidly gaining territory in rural areas and UK, US and other forces withdrew.

Speaking in the Commons, Johnson said “all British troops assigned to Nato’s mission in Afghanistan are now returning home”. While he would not disclose the exact timetable of the departure for security reasons, the prime minister added: “I can tell the house that most of our personnel have already left.”

In a separate defence briefing, the head of the armed forces, Sir Nick Carter, acknowledged that recent news from Afghanistan had been “pretty grim” but said the Afghan military had been regrouping to defend urban areas.

He said that while it was fair to say the Taliban now held nearly 50% of the rural districts in Afghanistan and that the Afghan army would also no longer have access to western air power from within the country, he hoped there would eventually be peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan government.

Britain’s remaining 750-strong contingent, part of a wider Nato stabilisation mission, has been leaving the country over the past few weeks to an operational deadline of 4 July after the US president, Joe Biden, said he wanted to pull out most of the remaining 2,500 American combat troops.

Flag-lowering ceremonies have been largely conducted in secret as British forces have pulled out. The last of them took place on 24 June, when the union flag was handed to the British ambassador. Defence sources said the secrecy was at the request of the US, citing operational security.

Johnson and Carter both argued that the intervention in Afghanistan had helped foster fundamental changes in the country, citing improvements in access to electricity, water and education, with 8.2 million more children in school.

Classrooms included 3.6 million girls, added Johnson, highlighting that before 2001 in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, “virtually no girls attended school”.

Labour said Britain was leaving without having secured the gains of the past 20 years. Angela Rayner, the party’s deputy leader, said that while nobody wanted to see British troops permanently stationed in Afghanistan, “if we simply wash our hands or walk away it is hard to see a future without bloodier conflict and wider Taliban control”.

In reply, Johnson said he did not believe the Taliban were “guaranteed the kind of victory that you sometimes read about”. Later in the debate he added that the British intervention in Afghanistan “was never intended at any stage to be an open-ended commitment”.

There was also unease on the Conservative benches. The former party leader Iain Duncan Smith told MPs the withdrawal was “a little bit like the last days of Vietnam, an unprecedented and hurried exit with no commitment”.

Waheed Omer, adviser to the Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, and the director general of the public and strategic affairs office, said: “We respect the decision, we understand that our allies make their decisions based on their national interests. We cannot live in the past. What we are now concerned with is the new chapter, and how these relations are going to be realistically aligned to the new realities.”

Britain will leave behind a small number of troops to support a US-led protection force for diplomats in Kabul, although the Ministry of Defence would not say how many were remaining on the ground.

The RAF could become involved in providing air support from airbases outside Afghanistan, following the abandonment last week of the main Bagram base. Losing easy access to air power is a big loss for the Afghan army as it battles to fend off the Taliban advance.

The Foreign Office also intends to maintain an embassy in Kabul, although it will not, at least initially, be guarded by British troops. The UK government will provide £100m in aid and £58m for Afghan defence forces.

Carter said no provincial capital had fallen in Afghanistan and that it was “entirely possible that the Afghan government defeats the Taliban for long enough for the Taliban to realise that they have to talk”.

But he admitted it was one of three possible scenarios for the country, the others being a return to warlordism and a Taliban victory.

Johnson also resisted calls to hold a public inquiry into the war along the lines of the Chilcot report on Iraq, which Tobias Ellwood, the chair of the defence select committee, called for in the Commons. It would take too long, Johnson said, adding that the Chilcot inquiry had taken seven years and “cost millions”.

British soldiers who served could hold up their heads “very high”, Carter suggested. He paid tribute to the soldiers who had died over the past 20 years. The British army now had a new “combat ethos” learned from fighting in Helmand. “They were never defeated on the battlefield,” he said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
×