Comparison of the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the failure of the United States in the Vietnam War

 Comparison of the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the failure of the United States in the Vietnam War

In the context of the Taliban's recapture of Afghanistan after 20 years, the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan is being compared on social media with the return of Washington from Saigon.

In this regard, pictures of the US withdrawal from Vietnam in 1975 are also going viral on social media and it is said that history repeats itself.

About half a century ago, when the US-backed capital of South Vietnam was taken over by the North Vietnamese government, which was ruled by a communist party, some of the same scenes were seen on August 15, 2021. Seen in Afghanistan.

Helicopter images from the roof of the U.S. embassy compound on August 15 reminded many people of the time when the Americans evacuated the city of Saigon in panic in 1975 after the failure of the Vietnam War. And long queues of Vietnamese citizens were hoping to find a new way out of the uncertain situation.

According to the Washington Post, questions arose about the fate of American citizens, soldiers and those who supported their efforts under the US-backed government, even before the failure of the Vietnam War.
Surprisingly, the reaction of Joe Biden, then as a senator and now as president, is similar.

In April 1975, 32-year-old Joe Biden was among the senators summoned to the White House for a secret meeting on the crisis in Vietnam.

According to Roland Evans and Robert Novak, they sent a clear message at the time that the situation in Vietnam was "disappointing" and that the United States should leave as soon as possible. Decided to evacuate the citizens.
The Vietnam and Afghanistan wars have a lot in common, such as the Vietnam War, in which the US military was involved for 19 years, while the Afghan war lasted for almost 20 years, and now the withdrawal from Afghanistan is being called the new or second US Is.

When the United States withdrew from Vietnam in 1975, it lost 58,000 troops and 10,000 warships and helicopters during the war.
The occupation of Saigon on April 30, 1975 signaled the end of the Vietnam War, a few months after the Communists took control of the entire country.

Similarly, in July this year, US President Joe Biden announced the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, and the Afghan government relinquished control of the presidential palace after the Taliban arrived in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on August 15. Announced that the war in Afghanistan is over.
Just as the United States overthrew the Taliban in 2001, the Taliban ousted the United States and its allies from the capital, Kabul, 20 years later.

However, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken dismissed the widespread comparison, telling ABC News: "Let's take a step back. This is clearly not the case."