As security worsens in Afghanistan, what does NATO’s withdrawal mean for Europe?

US president Joe Biden’s decision to pull all troops out of Afghanistan by September 11 - which will mark 20 years since the terror attacks that sparked the initial invasion - has forced the hand of its NATO allies. “All NATO countries involved are reliant on the US for basing, particularly logistics, force protection and medivac chains,” explains Reynolds. “Without that US network there was never really an option for NATO to remain independently of the US,” he says, pointing out that regardless of whether each nation agrees with the withdrawal, countries involved are doing the “pragmatic thing” and maintaining NATO solidarity.