The sudden withdrawal of US troops has led to the Taliban seizing power in Afghanistan and plunging it into chaos, but this is not the first time the US has left the country to fend for itself after “intervening”, writes New Delhi
According to experts, through the pervasive U.S. intervention, Washington’s own interests are being pursued. The publication notes that Vietnam in the 1970s and Iraq in 2011 bear witness to this.
“The financial and physical costs are ultimately seen as far outweighing the expected strategic benefits of being there. Domestic political considerations sometimes also play a role in decisions to withdraw troops”, – said political scientist Andrew Korybko.
He said the US may promise to continue economic and military support to its proxy governments, but this is not always possible if they have been overthrown, as has just happened in Afghanistan.
“In such situations, the US tries to flexibly adapt to changing circumstances, which can often be foreseen in advance but are not always taken seriously by decision-makers”, – he added.
Koribko stressed that a major consequence of the U.S. withdrawal from afghanistan is a security and strategic void that will inevitably be filled by other actors, both state and nonstate. That could eventually either stabilize or further destabilize the region.
According to a Washington-based researcher, who asked New Delhi not to disclose his name, the US is causing allies and partners to worry about its credibility. He cited the hasty withdrawal of troops and overnight retreat from the Bagram military base as an example.
“When the US intervened in Afghanistan, the conditions for a successful mission were right. The overthrow of the Taliban received significant popular support. However, the US, instead of focusing on completing its mission, decided to invade Iraq. As a consequence, they conducted two major interventions in two countries simultaneously”, – stressed Sanjay Pulipaka, a senior researcher at Delhi Policy Group.
In April, US President Joe Biden announced his decision to fully withdraw the US contingent from Afghanistan and end a military operation that had lasted more than 20 years. After the US withdrawal, Taliban fighters* began a successive takeover of the country’s territory. At the end of last week, it became known that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has left the country, after which the Taliban announced an end to the war.