Turkey courts Biden with Kabul airport offer

ANKRA: Turkey is offering to protect Kabul's strategic airport after US forces leave in what experts view as a high-risk bid to improve Ankara's strained ties with Washington.

Keeping the air hub safe from advancing Taliban forces became a major issue after US President Joe Biden called an end to Washington's 20-year involvement by ordering all troops out of Afghanistan by the end of next month, reported foreign media. Hamid Karzai International Airport offers the safest route for embassy staff and humanitarian aid to reach the war-torn country. Its fall could leave Afghanistan largely cut off from the world. Ankara's surprise proposal gave Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a chance to build a rapport with Biden during their first meeting at a NATO summit in June.

The offer meets two of the Turkish leader's objectives: warm chilly ties with Western allies and avert an influx of refugees by keeping aid routes open. "Turkey has a vested interest in Afghanistan's stability," said Magdalena Kirchner, Afghanistan country director at German foundation Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Turkish officials play down the diplomatic aspects of the mission and stress the importance of relieving the suffering in Afghanistan.