WH’s Sullivan: Taliban Has Been ‘Business-Like’ — ‘We Have an Enormous Amount of Leverage over Them’

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Deadline” that the Taliban had been “business-like” while dealing with the United States.

Sullivan said, “After 20 years of war, you’re talking about not hundreds of thousands but millions of people who in one way or another helped with this effort. So the process has been hard, it has been personal, and, yes, it has required us to your question to work with the Taliban. As General McKenzie said last night, they have been business-like in their approach with us. Not because they’re nice guys, they’re not. But because they have had an interest along with us to make that evacuation mission run smoothly. Going forward, I think they’ll have an interest in responding to our requests because we have an enormous amount of leverage over them. We intend to use that leverage to keep getting people out.”

He added, “We have yet to see what they are going to be now that they are in control, physical control of Afghanistan. They will, in the coming days, announce a government. That government is going to go around seeking diplomatic engagement, even recognition from other countries, including the United States. In fact, the Taliban spokesman today said he was looking for positive relations on behalf of the Taliban, especially with the United States. We’re not just going to grant positive relations to the Taliban. They’re going to have to earn everything from the international community through actions, not words. that begins with safe passage for Americans and Afghan allies, and that also includes them living up to their counterterrorism commitments, including that Afghanistan can never again be used as a base from which to attack the United States or our allies again.”

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