WASHINGTON, December 12. /TASS/. The withdrawal of US servicemen from Afghanistan in 2021 allowed Washingtont to rededicate resources for other needs, including in Ukraine, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

When asked about Washington’s benefits from the withdrawal of troops, Blinken replied: "It gained us the opportunity to refocus and rededicate our resources to the challenges of this moment, from the Russian aggression against Ukraine, to the many challenges posed by China to many other issues around the world where we were able to free up resources, free up focus, free up time."

Blinken was then asked whether he saw any connection between the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the start of Russia’s special military operation. "No. On the contrary, I think our adversaries, including Russia, would have been delighted if we double down and remain stuck in Afghanistan for another 20 years now," the top US diplomat replied.

After Washington announced in the spring of 2021 that it would withdraw US troops from Afghanistan, Taliban members launched a large-scale operation to seize control of the country. On August 15, they captured Kabul without a fight. Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani stepped down and fled the country. US troops left Afghanistan by early September 2021.