Statement from Chairman of the Afghanistan Withdrawal Special Review Panel Sean Parnell

The Afghanistan Withdrawal Special Review Panel has completed the substantive phase of its interviews with senior military and civilian leaders.

This Panel was established by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at the direction of President Donald J. Trump to conduct the most comprehensive military after action review in modern history. We have now interviewed key figures involved in the planning and execution of the withdrawal, including:

• General David H. Berger, USMC (Ret.), former Commandant of the Marine Corps;
• General Christopher T. Donahue, USA, former Commanding General of the 82nd Airborne Division, current commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa;
• General Alexus G. Grynkewich, USAF, former U.S. Central Command Operations Officer, current Supreme Allied Commander of Europe;
• General Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr., USMC (Ret.), former Commander, U.S. Central Command;
• General Austin S. Miller, USA (Ret.), former Commander, U.S. Forces-Afghanistan and NATO Resolute Support Mission;
• General Mark A. Milley, USA (Ret.), former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff;
• General James J. Mingus, USA (Ret.), former Joint Chiefs Director of Operations;
• Lieutenant General Carl E. Mundy, III, USMC (Ret.), former MARCENT Commander;
• Lieutenant General Paul J. Rock, Jr., former MARCENT Commander, current Director of the Marine Corps Staff;
• Lieutenant General Ricky L. Waddell, USA (Ret.), former Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Senior Military Advisor to the Secretary of State;
• Rear Admiral Peter G. Vasely (Ret.), USN, former Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan - Forward at HKIA;
• Major General Julian C. Cheater, USAF, former Over the Horizon-Counter Terrorism Operations (OTH-CT) Commander, current Director of Strategy, Policy and Plans, U.S. Southern Command;
• Major General Derek J. O'Malley, USAF, former Commander 455th AEW, former Commander of Bagram Airfield, current Director of the Department of War Special Access Program Central Office;
• Major General Farrell J. Sullivan, USMC, former commander of Joint Task Force-Crisis Response (JTF-CR), current Commanding General, 2nd Marine Division; and dozens of other senior officers and officials and interagency partners.

In addition to these interviews, the Panel has reviewed more than NINE MILLION documents drawn from multiple agencies and prior Department of Defense efforts. By contrast, the previous Department-wide review commissioned under former Secretary Lloyd Austin examined around 3,000 documents and was significantly narrower in scope. The Secretary Austin-led effort was also over-classified at the highest levels, which effectively kept the most critical and relevant information from public scrutiny.

This will be the most thorough, transparent, and honest accounting the American people have received of what happened in August 2021. We are executing at the direction of President Trump and Secretary Hegseth to deliver a full and unflinching examination of the systemic, institutional, and leadership factors that contributed to the collapse. Our purpose is to identify failures in decision-making so that we may prevent the United States from ever repeating this tragedy. It is our duty to ensure that the greatest military on Earth is accountable to the American people.

Our work continues. We are now integrating the massive documentary record, cross-referencing prior reviews, and preparing our findings and recommendations. The final report will be delivered to the Secretary of War and the American people in the coming months.