We’re almost a month past America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, and it is shocking to see how quickly the conflict and the debacle of the withdrawal has faded already in the public square.
Today on the podcast, I unpack the history of the Afghanistan war, the withdrawal and its effects with two veterans of the Afghanistan conflict, Joseph Lake and Matt Said.
Besides being personal friends and all around great guys, I asked Joseph and Matt to be on the podcast at the same time so that listeners can get an idea of the complexity of war. They were in the country at different points in time, in different regions, doing different things, which informs their thinking on the subject.
Conversation starters
What should the US military be used for? If we can’t nation-build, but we’re supposed to fight for the freedom of others, what does that look like? What would a more narrowly defined strategic vision look like in a world of great power competition (GPC)?
The spoken and written word (podcasts and reading)
Organizations
- SaveOurAllies.org
- This is a group of vets and NGO working to evacuate the remaining US citizens, allies, and visa holders from Afghanistan. If you heard this podcast and thought, “What could I do?” you might want to look here.
Articles
- Major Jim Gant, “One Tribe at a Time”
- TTP, “Beyond Air-Sea Battle”
- TPP, “The Deep File: The Afghanistan Crisis”
Podcasts
The last word
“The high probability is if American forces withdraw from Afghanistan and if no alternative international arrangement is made that then the historic contests between the regions and the sects will reappear, the Taliban will re-emerge, and a very complicated and maybe chaotic situation will develop.”
– Henry Kissinger…. In 2014!