Trump urges Biden not to link troop removal from Afghanistan to 20th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks

President Joe Biden announced his intentions on Wednesday to have the US begin withdrawing American troops from Afghanistan on May 1, with the final departure date as September 11, 2021.

Trump issued a statement on Sunday urging Biden to stick to the original timeline and not to politicize the American withdrawal by linking it to September 11, 2021, which will mark the 20th anniversary of the attacks on New York and Washington, DC.

"I wish Joe Biden wouldn't use September 11th as the date to withdraw our troops from Afghanistan, for two reasons," Trump wrote.

"First, we can and should get out earlier. Nineteen years is enough, in fact, far too much and way too long. I made early withdraw possible by already pulling much of our billions of dollars of equipment out and, more importantly, reducing our military presence to less than 2,000 troops from the 16,000 level that was there (likewise in Iraq, and zero troops in Syria except for the area where we KEPT THE OIL).

"Secondly, September 11th represents a very sad event and period for our Country and should remain a day of reflection and remembrance honoring those great souls we lost. Getting out of Afghanistan is a wonderful and positive thing to do. I planned to withdraw on May 1st, and we should keep as close to that schedule as possible."

On September 11, 2001, terrorists who flew planes into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, respectively, while another suicide mission into the White House was thwarted by those passengers aboard.

Former President Donald Trump had previously given the word of the nation that the military would leave the war-torn country by May 1. While Biden said that he would stand by the promise to withdraw.

Biden indicated in his speech on Wednesday, when he formally announced the withdrawal, that though he would not have pledged to pull troops from this longstanding conflict as Trump had done, it was an agreement made by the US government, and "that means something."

Biden said that "we will not take our eyes off the terrorist threat. We will reorganize our counter-terrorism capabilities, and the substantial assets in the reason to prevent reemergence of terrorists' threats to our homeland from over the horizon."

"We will hold the Taliban accountable to their commitment not allow any terrorists threats to the United States or its allies from Afghan soil." Biden noted that he would hold the government of Afghanistan accountable to that as well. Biden said that if the US is attacked during the withdrawal, there would be a response.

While troops will be leaving the much fought-over nation, the US will not be abandoning it financially. Biden said that masses of funding would be delivered to Afghanistan in the form of aid both from the US and from allies in the region.