State Department to Let House Foreign Affairs Committee Leaders View Afghan Dissent Cable

The U.S. Department of State is seen in Washington on Jan. 6, 2020. Mark Wilson/Getty Images

After months of back-and-forth tensions, the State Department announced on May 17 that it will allow House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Democratic Ranking Member Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) to view a dissent cable from the time of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

During a briefing at the State Department, principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said the department sent a letter to the committee on May 17 with an offer “to view the dissent cable at the State Department in camera, with appropriate personal information redacted.”