It is unclear Harris’ involvement in Afghanistan pullout despite being with Biden at the end.

Vice President Kamala Harris’ role in the messy withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan has been shrouded in uncertainty, despite her previous acknowledgment that she was the “last person in the room” with President Biden before the decision was made. According to a recent report by The Washington Post, officials have revealed that Harris posed important questions during interagency meetings in early 2021, prior to the chaotic 17-day evacuation from Kabul and the tragic suicide bombing that took the lives of 13 U.S. service members and approximately 170 Afghan civilians at the Abbey Gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport.

During these deliberations, the vice president, who is now the Democratic presidential nominee, adopted a district attorney-like approach while asking questions, but failed to provide clarity on her stance, as noted by a senior military official who preferred to remain anonymous. The official mentioned that Harris did not indicate her position during the discussions.

Conversely, another former military official who participated in the administration’s deliberations at the time disputed the significance of Harris’s role in the National Security Council meetings led by Biden in 2021. However, the official acknowledged that Harris may have advised Biden outside of these formal meetings.

In a statement to The Washington Post, a Harris aide emphasized that the vice president asked critical questions during the deliberations leading up to the withdrawal and fully supported President Biden’s decision to end the prolonged war in Afghanistan. The aide declined to divulge details about Harris’s private counsel with the President.

Harris has positioned herself as a closely involved vice president in the administration’s pivotal matters, confirming to CNN in 2021 that she was present with Biden as he made the consequential decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan, thereby ending over two decades of conflict. Campaigning for the presidency in 2019, Harris expressed her commitment to ensuring stability in the country and safeguarding the progress made by Afghan women and other vulnerable groups.

At the onset of Biden’s presidency in 2021, Afghan official Nader Nadery, an adviser to then-President Ashraf Ghani, had hoped that Harris would influence Biden to maintain a U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan until a peace deal with the Taliban could be secured. With the Taliban’s resurgence and the subsequent deterioration of women’s rights in the country, Nadery questioned whether Harris had advocated for a change in course to protect these rights.

Critics, including Republicans and former President Trump, have censured Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal, particularly in light of his failure to mention the 13 U.S. service members killed at the Abbey Gate during a presidential debate in June. Trump and other critics have lambasted Biden for not publicly acknowledging the fallen soldiers by name.

The families of the fallen service members spoke at the Republican National Convention, condemning the lack of recognition given to their loved ones by Biden. Despite the backlash against Biden’s actions, the same level of scrutiny has not been directed towards Vice President Harris in relation to the Afghanistan withdrawal as the Democratic ticket shifts focus to Harris and her newly chosen running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.