Have lessons been learned in Afghanistan?

 

Bill Knight column for 4-26, 27 or 28, 2021

 Fifty years ago last week, more than 1,000 members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War descended on Washington, D.C. for days, dramatically demanding an end to that war by testifying, lobbying lawmakers, and protesting – throwing back their medals onto the Capitol steps.

It was a turning point, though peace was years away.

As President Biden recently announced his plan to bring home the last 2,500 or so U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, one suspects veterans of the Afghanistan war had influence on the difficult decision.

Of course, troubling uncertainties remain, and second-guessing is under way.

In Illinois alone, hundreds of National Guard personnel and regular service members served there, among the 775,000-plus U.S. troops sent there since 2001, with 2,400 dying, and 20,000 injured. Their experiences undoubtedly mattered, as well as flagging support for the war among veterans and the general population.

Pew Research in 2019 showed 58% of all veterans said the Afghanistan war wasn’t worth it; this year, 54% of those who’ve served after 9/11 favor reductions (NORC at the University of Chicago), and 76% of American adults support withdrawal (from the conservative Charles Koch Institute).

When President George W. Bush launched Operation Enduring Freedom in October 2001, the goals were to punish al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden for the 9/11 attacks, and to defeat Afghanistan’s Taliban, which harbored the terrorists. Bin Laden escaped until he was killed in 2011, but the Taliban was quickly toppled.

However, U.S. and NATO forces then shifted the focus to nation building, stopping the illicit drug trade, emancipating women, and reforming corrupt government – a mistaken “mission creep” that turned swift military victory into a “forever war” trying to impose a new structure by means of air power, ground forces, drone strikes, etc.

Illinois’ U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said, “We have long since lost sight of our original mission.”

The longest war in U.S. history, its occupation falls between Great Britain, which left in 1919 some 80 years after invading, and the Soviet Union, which withdrew 70 years later after almost a decade.

It’s cost the United States $1 trillion, plus more for future care for veterans. About 100,000 Afghan civilians and another 58,000 Afghan security forces also died.

In 2019, the Washington Post’s “Lessons Learned” series exposed the war’s folly.

“The ‘Lessons Learned’ interviews contradict years of public statements by Presidents, generals and diplomats,” the series said. “Officials issued rosy pronouncements they knew to be false and hid unmistakable evidence the war had become unwinnable. Several of those interviewed described explicit efforts by the U.S. government to deliberately mislead the public and a culture of willful ignorance, where bad news and critiques were unwelcome.”

Congressman Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) scolded members of the 15-member Afghanistan Study Group – made up of military, political, economic and diplomatic figures – which recommended staying. “Those who had any part in getting us into this 20-year war should not be opining about keeping us mired in it,” Khanna said. “This is what makes people so angry about Washington.”

Biden inherited a commitment by President Trump, who impulsively agreed to a May 1 withdrawal but had no plan to do so. (Trump also sent more new troops to the Middle East than he recalled, according to the Institute for Policy Studies).

Biden’s choices seem to have been leaving hurriedly in a few weeks, staying indefinitely, or bargaining while organizing a withdrawal. (NATO said it’s withdrawing its 7,000 troops, too.)

Working with the U.N., Turkey and Russia, with input from China, India, Iran and Pakistan, U.S. diplomats have proposed a power-sharing “peace government” to maintain order while writing a new constitution and planning an election. But the Taliban is unwilling to compromise, much less share power.

Also hesitant are Afghani President Ashraf Ghani and his chief rival, Abdullah Abdullah (who also claimed the presidency last month, when they held dueling inaugurations).

Nagging questions loom about what happens until Sept. 11, and beyond. A renewed civil war may occur, a grim and bloody result after which women could lose the rights they’ve gained. What about the many private contractors and special forces, intelligence personnel, support and security staff to help secure the capital Kabul? What about those left behind, such as tranerslators? And does withdrawal reflect a change in U.S. foreign policy or a new anti-war or isolationist direction? Conservative William Ruger, an Afghanistan vet at the Koch Institute, said, “It is past time we bring our troops home from Afghanistan. A speedy and full withdrawal from the country is what the American people want and what best serves American interests.”

So: Afghanistan’s future will be the responsibility of Afghanis, not Americans?

Lesson learned, finally?