Hundreds of people gather near a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane at a perimeter at the international airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Aug. 16, 2021. That day, the U.S. military and officials focus was on Kabul’s airport, where thousands of Afghans trapped by the sudden Taliban takeover rushed the tarmac and clung to U.S. military planes deployed to fly out staffers of the U.S. Embassy, which shut down Aug. 15, and others.

PENDLETON — Veteran communities in Eastern Oregon were among the many who felt mixed emotions with the rapidly unraveling situation in Afghanistan.

Kerry Thompson, Eastern Oregon University’s Hermiston Center military-veteran coordinator, has been in total disbelief at the pullout from Afghanistan and said he’s heartbroken.

“I ask myself, is it all for nothing?” Thompson said. “Over 2,000 American lives lost over there, trillions of dollars we spent and my heart really goes out to the Afghani civilians. They have to be terrified of what they’re going through right now.”

Thompson said his son had served in Afghanistan as well and they both had friends who died while serving. He said he is worried about the American troops trying to get everyone out right now.

“Do I think we needed to still be there?” he asked, “No, I do not. The way that we left I think is going to be a stain on America.”

Thompson, who served in the Army from 1987 until 2008, was part of the first ground forces in Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division in 2001 and 2002. He was deployed two times, once to Iraq and once to Afghanistan.

He said the pullout could’ve been done more systematically. To him, it felt like one day troops were there and the next day they weren’t.

“I haven’t been in the Army for 13 years, but I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said.

For veterans who are struggling with recent news rolling out of Afghanistan, “be proud of yourself and what you’ve done,” Thompson said. “And don’t be afraid to reach out to anyone if you need help.”

President defends decision to withdrawVeterans and their families nationwide are reeling from the recent news of the Taliban’s rapid seizure of Afghanistan after the United States began withdrawing troops.

On Monday, Aug. 16, President Joe Biden defended his decision to withdraw the troops.

“We gave them every tool they could need. We paid their salaries. Provided for the maintenance of their airplanes,” Biden said of the Afghanistan government, which crumbled in a matter of days. “We gave them every chance to determine their own future. What we could not provide was the will to fight for that future.”

Biden echoed a sentiment held by many veterans and their families across the nation: “How many more generations of America’s daughters and sons would you have me send to fight Afghans — Afghanistan’s civil war, when Afghan troops will not?”

Duane Carter, a Hermiston resident and veteran of the United States Army, 24th Infantry, served in Operation Desert Shield in Saudi Arabia and Desert Storm in Iraq. Carter said he has grown numb to the news.

“It didn’t surprise me,” he said of watching the Afghan government crumble. “But at least we’re getting out of there.”

But scenes from the Kabul Airport, showing Afghan citizens desperately climbing onto aircrafts to escape, did surprise Carter. Some citizens who clung to planes fell to their deaths, according to news reports.

Carter said he “had no doubt” the Taliban would reaffirm its grip on the nation after the U.S.’s departure. But what was surprising, Carter said, was the speed at which the Afghan government fell.

“I feel sorry for all the guys who served over there, lost their lives, got wounded,” he said. “This must crush them. There was a lot of time and effort over there. And it’s just gone.”

The most important thing now, Carter said, is to “get all the troops out” safely.

“We’ve already lost too many people,” he said.

Local leaders speak out

Now a refugee crisis is sweeping the world, as Afghan citizens desperately seek a way to escape the country.

Oregon Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena, is one of a handful of Republican legislators who have so far signed a letter that seeks to create a safe passage for Afghan refugees.

The letter, sent to Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, calls on the Biden administration to “lift the refugee admission caps and take other emergency humanitarian actions that will save lives at this pivotal time.” It says the state must “take all the necessary steps to be prepared to resettle families when they arrive.”

“It’s not right, morally, to abandon our friends in tough situations,” Hansell said.

Hansell said he would support efforts aimed at expediting the process of getting Afghans safely to the U.S. He said he has grown “concerned” and “frustrated” with the U.S. government’s actions leading up to the Afghan government’s collapse.

Pendleton Mayor John Turner, an Iraq veteran and retired colonel and infantry officer who served in the 1st, 3rd and 4th Marine divisions for 28 years, said he thought the collapse of Afghanistan was very predictable.

“I think any of us that were paying close attention were a bit surprised by the rapidity of how the Afghan government fell,” he said. “I don’t think anybody was surprised by the fact that it actually fell.”

Turner said it was an incredibly difficult issue and it will continue in the weeks to come with the United States only being able to evacuate about 5,000 people a day. Since the United States still has tremendous combat power, though, he said he thinks the Taliban will be sensible and let the evacuation take place peacefully.

While he’s sure it’s frustrating to veterans who served in Afghanistan, Turner said they still accomplished their goal to eliminate the Taliban as a source of power and a safe haven for terrorism training — even while they might not have been able to convert Afghanistan into a pro-Western democratic government over the following 19 years.

“We probably should have withdrawn 15 years ago,” he said. “This is a problem that’s been faced now by four American presidents over a 20-year period. Afghanistan is a unique country. It’s got a tribal culture. It’s not necessarily adaptable to Western democratic principles, so I don’t think anybody who served there was surprised by what happened.”