Yes, the Biden Administration’s drawdown of America’s longest war has been messy; made especially frustrating by the non-stop replaying of videos of Afghan citizens desperate to be evacuated hanging on to the fuselage and wings of military planes, only to fall to their deaths when the planes take off from Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport.
Then there was the devastating news that 13 U.S. military along with over 160 Afghan civilians were killed in a suicide bombing just outside the airport evacuation staging area. News and images of these somber events once again became the go-to feeding frenzy for cable news, and for critics of President Biden; some calling for his resignation or impeachment.
And, yes, Congress at some point should hold hearings to discover all that went sideways and for those who failed to do their job be held accountable.
But let us not in the midst of the sadness and frustration forget the mess left to the current administration created by the previous administration.
In February 2020, the Trump Administration made a deal with the Taliban (which was hailed by Trump’s Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as “a once in a generation peace agreement“) but in effect designed a blueprint for the Taliban’s return to control of Afghanistan.
The peace agreement called for the immediate withdrawal of allied troops, including U.S. troops down to 8,600 (within four months) and all troops out within 14 months. The ‘deal’ also included the United States agreeing to free five thousand Taliban prisoners – it should be noted that the Taliban called themselves the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan but the United States did not recognise the IEA as a legitimate state.
In the agreement the U.S. also made a commitment to reach the goal of “removing sanctions from members of the Taliban including [UN] travel bans, asset freezes, and an arms embargo”. With this strategy, said the former president, “we think we’ll be successful in the end”
Successful probably was not the appropriate word to use because as reported in early March 2020, the former president knew the real potential, as described by an aide briefed on intelligence, that “They [the Taliban] have no intention of abiding by their agreement”. Trump acknowledged as much, saying ‘the Taliban could “possibly” overrun the Afghan government after U.S. troops leave and that “you can only hold someone’s hand for so long”‘.
But earlier in that week, there were reports that the Taliban had already broken “the short-lived peace deal” saying they would return to combat operations against Afghan forces.
Moreover, while the ‘peace’ talks were underway earlier in Qatar, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Afghan government negotiators that the United States will “sit on the side and help where we can” in talks with Taliban militants. While these photo-op events were taking place, ISIS attacked Kabul with mortars hitting a residential area killing eight people and injuring over 30 people. It was Pompeo’s last meeting with Taliban and Afghan negotiators.
When Republicans realised the former president’s ‘peace deal’ was not all that it was cracked up to be and following on the heels of his admitting it probably would go sideways, the Republican National Committee removed a page from its website that gave thanks and glory to their dear leader regarding his ‘once in a generation’ peace deal.
But, thanks to the Wayback Machine, an internet-archive site, which the removal on August 15 was described as attempted when “chaotic scenes emerged from Kabul of US forces evacuating officials from its embassy as Taliban militants seized control of the country”, a copy of the RNC’s original hail-to-the-chief post was preserved:
PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS CONTINUED TO TAKE THE LEAD IN PEACE TALKS AS HE SIGNED A HISTORIC PEACE AGREEMENT WITH THE TALIBAN IN AFGHANISTAN, WHICH WOULD END AMERICA’S LONGEST WAR
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- On February 2, 2020, the Trump Administration signed a preliminary peace agreement with the Taliban that sets the stage to end America’s longest war.
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- Under the agreement, the U.S. will withdraw nearly 5,000 troops from the country in 135 days in exchange for a Taliban agreement to not allow Afghanistan to be used for transnational terrorism.
- Time Magazine reported that other components of the agreement included an agreement that U.S. counterterrorism forces stay in the country, permissions for the CIA to operate in Taliban-held areas, and details of how the Taliban’s promises to reduce violence will be monitored and verified.
- The deal has been called the ” best chance to end this conflict ,” a ” decisive move ” towards peace, and ” the best path ” for the United States.
- The war in Afghanistan is the longest in U.S. history, a conflict that has killed more than 3,500 U.S. and NATO troops and cost U.S. taxpayers nearly 900 billion dollars.
- As part of the peace agreement, the Taliban and the Afghan government recently began historic peace, talks which would end decades of war that Afghanistan has consumed.
- The negotiations will cover the terms of a ” permanent ceasefire, the rights of women and minorities, and the disarmament of the country’s many militia groups .”
And finally:
In historic call, Trump speaks to Taliban leader amid concerns about deal with US
It’s the first call between an American president and the militant group.
March 4, 2020.
Days after his administration signed a deal with the Taliban, President Donald Trump spoke to its co-founder and senior leader in a historic call — the first known conversation between an American president and the militant group that harbored the al Qaeda operatives responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.
After the conversation, Trump said he had a “very good” relationship with the Taliban’s co-founder.
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