U.K. defense secretary breaks down in interview on Afghanistan: 'Some people won't get back'

U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace broke down during a live interview while saying that "some people won't get back" from Afghanistan.

Wallace spoke with LBC amid the ongoing chaos as Afghanistan falls to the Taliban, noting that the U.K. is there to help evacuating British passport holders, British officials, and Afghans.

"We're not doing other diplomatic functions," he said. "We are simply there to process all those British passport holders and all those people we have an obligation to. Our men and women of our armed forces are risking their lives doing that, but that is the right thing to do."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up

Wallace become emotional, though, as he added that "some people won't get back." When asked why the situation is so personal to him, Wallace, who served in the British Army, said it's "because I'm a soldier," as well as "because it's sad that the West has done what it's done."

When previously asked by Sky News whether Britain would return to Afghanistan, Wallace said that's "not on the cards," per Reuters. He also told BBC that "the die was cast when the deal" with the Taliban "was done by Donald Trump if you want my observation," per HuffPost, adding, "The seeds of what we're seeing today were before President Biden took office."