British evacuations out of Afghanistan could not have happened without the US – and an extension depends on G7 talks with Joe Biden tomorrow, the armed forces minister has told Sky News.
James Heappey said the mission to fly out thousands of British nationals and Afghans who worked for the British over the past 20 years could not have happened without the US Air Force.
He told Sky News: “It is certainly the case that the mission in Kabul this week is fundamentally underpinned by a US presence, not just the number of troops at the airport but the role the US Air Force is playing in delivering air traffic control and all of the other airfield services.
“There is a hard reality that there would be no international airlift without the way the US is underpinning it.”
Image: Eight flights of people were evacuated in the past 24 hours by the British
President Joe Biden has set a deadline for allowing people to flee the Taliban after they took over Afghanistan on 15 August of the end of the month.
Mr Biden has signalled he could be willing to bow to demands, revealing discussions were already underway and he would tell the G7: “We will see what we can do.”
More on Afghanistan
Mr Heappey said the foreign secretary and defence secretary have been talking to their US counterparts about an extension but it is “a matter for the prime minister” tomorrow.
But, he said the decision is not solely up to the US president.
Image: Many more people are waiting to be evacuated from Kabul
“A conversation with the Taliban will follow,” he added.
“The Taliban will have a choice – they can either seek to engage with the international community and show they want to be a part of the international system, want to be engaged in international diplomacy, or they can turn around and say ‘no, there’s no opportunity for an extension’.
“This is not just a discussion amongst G7 leaders tomorrow, but also with the Taliban.”
However, Taliban spokesman Dr Suhail Shaheen told Sky News 31 August is “a red line” and there will be “consequences” if Mr Biden delays the withdrawal of US troops.
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‘Consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
Labour’s shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds told Sky News the prime minister “should be moving heaven and earth” to get an extension as he accused the UK government of being “asleep at the wheel” regarding the situation in Afghanistan.
Mr Heappey said the UK has extracted 1,821 people on eight flights from Kabul in the past 24 hours, with 6,631 evacuated in the past week.
He said that was originally “pretty much the target” but more people have come forward who are eligible to be brought to the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) recently set up.
The armed forces minister said the “hard reality” was not all people eligible would be airlifted out but said there is a “second phase” where people will be able to register for ARAP at a refugee handling centre or embassies in the region.
“There were a number of people from civil society that weren’t part of ARAP, but the UK government has been trying to do the right thing,” he said.
Mr Heappey said the UK’s relationship with the US remains strong and they are working together around the world to support each other, including in Haiti, the Philippines, Subsaharan Africa and eastern Europe.
“Around the world, the US and the UK remain the closest of allies,” he said.
“Of course, when you disagree with your closest friend it hurts, it causes consternation on both sides, but nobody should think the UK and US have anything but the deepest and closest of friendships.”
Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.
While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.
All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.
The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.
Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.
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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.
The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.
And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.
Image: US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters
Trump holds trade deal talks – reports
It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indianand Israelirepresentatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.
The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.
Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.
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China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.
Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.
Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.
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6:50
Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump
He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’
“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”
Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.
The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.
The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.
The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.
The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.
Image: Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP
Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.
The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.
Image: The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP
After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.
He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.
South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.