It looks like a complete failure on that front. Reminiscent of the same ill thought out approach
to Western interventions.
Jon Redman
2 years ago
Napoleon’s long-drawn-out strategic defeat in the Peninsula emboldened his adversaries elsewhere to rejoin the fray against him: Austria in 1809, Russia in 1812, Prussia in 1813.
The same seems likely here. I reckon we will soon see someone like China do something like seize Taiwan or some other piece of the South China Sea, while daring the USA to do anything about it.
US forces will be well indoctrinated as to pronouns and their own racism, but whether they’re inclined and equipped to fight a proper enemy any more, who knows.
Perry de Havilland
2 years ago
The USA should have declared victory & got out by the end pf 2002, a year after the Taliban was driven from Kabul, leaving the anti-Taliban factions with a little PMC air support, a little money (& I do mean a little) and a pat on the back for encouragement regarding the rest of the country.
So yes, long overdue the US got out.
But that is not the problem, but rather the half-arsed way they got out, beclowning the USA with Biden making it clear two days before the government’s army utterly collapsed that talk of a collapse was preposterous.
Ian Barton
2 years ago
A good “non-hysterical” summary.
Such a shame that the MSM and social media can’t seem to even discuss the “long game” for everyone involved.
If we were better at doing that maybe we wouldn’t serially mess things up, as happens now. Worth paying my subscription for pieces like this.
GA Woolley
2 years ago
‘many Afghans for whom earlier periods of Taliban rule are beyond living memory.’ And, outside the major cities and towns, will notice little or no difference. They will be ruled by new warlords, the women and girls will be traded and used by their new masters, and religious observance will be more rigorously enforced. But their lives will be far closer to what they were before than they would be living here. They are 20 years distant from life under the Taliban. About 1000 years from life in the West.
Katharine Eyre
2 years ago
If we’re in the business of drawing parallels with Britain, perhaps consider whether this is to the USA what the partition of India was to Britain. Now that certainly wasn’t a consolidation of power. That was a similarly hasty, chaotic and damaging exit and showed Britain up for what it was: a clapped-out world power on the retreat.
I’d agree, but Palestine had already demonstrated that reality, although it was Suez that really drove it home.
JR Stoker
2 years ago
Very good point, and a clever if mishandled manoeuvre, if so. But I doubt the current President or his predecessor are capable of such sophisticated strategic thinking
Antonino Ioviero
2 years ago
Why were there 20,000 interpreters in the first place?
20 years not enough to teach Pashto, Dari etc. to a few army personnel?
Alan Hawkes
2 years ago
Stonewall seems to have abandoned women, gays and lesbians to focus on trans-women.
Hosias Kermode
2 years ago
Sorry but this feminist is outraged at exactly the loss of those freedoms. Read Aayan Hirsi Ali in today’s Unherd for precisely that analysis. In case you hadn’t noticed, Stonewall speaks for hardly any feminists today.
Carmel Shortall
2 years ago
Biden had to ditch Afghanistan in order to free himself up for the big fight ahead: the war against the American people.
Still, the withdrawal could/should have been managed just a tad better.
It looks like a complete failure on that front. Reminiscent of the same ill thought out approach
to Western interventions.
Napoleon’s long-drawn-out strategic defeat in the Peninsula emboldened his adversaries elsewhere to rejoin the fray against him: Austria in 1809, Russia in 1812, Prussia in 1813.
The same seems likely here. I reckon we will soon see someone like China do something like seize Taiwan or some other piece of the South China Sea, while daring the USA to do anything about it.
US forces will be well indoctrinated as to pronouns and their own racism, but whether they’re inclined and equipped to fight a proper enemy any more, who knows.
The USA should have declared victory & got out by the end pf 2002, a year after the Taliban was driven from Kabul, leaving the anti-Taliban factions with a little PMC air support, a little money (& I do mean a little) and a pat on the back for encouragement regarding the rest of the country.
So yes, long overdue the US got out.
But that is not the problem, but rather the half-arsed way they got out, beclowning the USA with Biden making it clear two days before the government’s army utterly collapsed that talk of a collapse was preposterous.
A good “non-hysterical” summary.
Such a shame that the MSM and social media can’t seem to even discuss the “long game” for everyone involved.
If we were better at doing that maybe we wouldn’t serially mess things up, as happens now. Worth paying my subscription for pieces like this.
‘many Afghans for whom earlier periods of Taliban rule are beyond living memory.’ And, outside the major cities and towns, will notice little or no difference. They will be ruled by new warlords, the women and girls will be traded and used by their new masters, and religious observance will be more rigorously enforced. But their lives will be far closer to what they were before than they would be living here. They are 20 years distant from life under the Taliban. About 1000 years from life in the West.
If we’re in the business of drawing parallels with Britain, perhaps consider whether this is to the USA what the partition of India was to Britain. Now that certainly wasn’t a consolidation of power. That was a similarly hasty, chaotic and damaging exit and showed Britain up for what it was: a clapped-out world power on the retreat.
I’d agree, but Palestine had already demonstrated that reality, although it was Suez that really drove it home.
Very good point, and a clever if mishandled manoeuvre, if so. But I doubt the current President or his predecessor are capable of such sophisticated strategic thinking
Why were there 20,000 interpreters in the first place?
20 years not enough to teach Pashto, Dari etc. to a few army personnel?
Stonewall seems to have abandoned women, gays and lesbians to focus on trans-women.
Sorry but this feminist is outraged at exactly the loss of those freedoms. Read Aayan Hirsi Ali in today’s Unherd for precisely that analysis. In case you hadn’t noticed, Stonewall speaks for hardly any feminists today.
Biden had to ditch Afghanistan in order to free himself up for the big fight ahead: the war against the American people.