ANKARA, 8 June, 2021 (TON): On Monday, Turkey vowed to provide defense at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in the Afghan capital, if a number of key conditions were met.

After weeks of uncertainty over whether Ankara would pull its troops from the airport in Kabul, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said the military would stay if its allies committed to certain political, financial, and logistical support.

This decision has also been under discussion with Washington and was also discussed during recent meeting of NATO defense ministers.

Several countries had considered closing their embassies in Afghanistan if the city airport was not secured.

Hamid Karzai international in Kabul is the primary airport of the country and also serves as a large military base but Afghan authorities do not have the capacity to provide full security at the site where air traffic control has been operated by NATO military staff since 2002.

Consequently, the airport’s security was important not only for military flights but also for supporting international organizations and NGOs distributing humanitarian aid.