NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance "was helping keep Kabul airport open to facilitate and coordinate evacuations" after consulting with member countries. "We are not going to risk our people falling into the hands of the Taliban," Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told the Bild daily. Haas later announced that German embassy staff would start being flown out from Sunday. In Paris the foreign ministry said military reinforcements were being deployed to the United Arab Emirates to help with evacuations through Abu Dhabi. Other NATO members including Britain, Italy, Denmark, Sweden and Spain have also announced they are evacuating their embassy personnel.

Source: Manila Times August 16, 2021 01:40 UTC