<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1660021354126,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000162-07c3-d172-a563-4febcc790000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1660021354126,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000162-07c3-d172-a563-4febcc790000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_60021346", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1069711"} }); ","_id":"00000182-80fb-df44-adfa-a4fba5660000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedThe former commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan said on Monday that the Taliban-run country is likely destined to be an “incubator for Islamist extremism” for years to come.
Retired Gen. David Petraeus, who led U.S. forces in Afghanistan from June 2010 through July 2011, wrote in an op-ed for the Atlantic on Monday about the United States’s failures in Afghanistan up to and including the Biden administration’s withdrawal from the country in August of last year. Petraeus noted that while there were better alternatives to withdrawal, the U.S. “underachieved in Afghanistan” and “made significant mistakes” over the 20 years of occupation of the country.
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“Our foundational mistake was our lack of commitment,” Petraeus wrote, arguing that an inconsistent approach across administrations, a lack of substantial military headquarters being established in Afghanistan, and “repeated exit seeking” were among the primary failures of the 20-year war against al Qaeda and the Taliban.
The retired general also pointed to the Trump-era peace deal with the Taliban in 2020 as a massive failure, calling it “among the worst diplomatic agreements to which the U.S. has ever been a party.”
“We acquiesced to Taliban demands because the resulting agreement gave us, in the narrowest sense possible, what we wanted: a defined timeline for our departure and a Taliban promise not to attack our forces,” Petraeus said, noting that the deal allowed for the release of more than 5,000 Taliban detainees who rejoined the Taliban and helped take over the country as U.S. forces withdrew.
While Petraeus praised the Biden administration’s strike against al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri as a “tremendous achievement,” he noted that Zawahiri’s presence in Kabul demonstrates that the Taliban are providing sanctuary to Islamist extremists.
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Petraeus concluded that what is likely to transpire in Afghanistan “looks to be exceedingly dire, and the situation there will likely continue to be a significant concern for America,” with a Taliban government enforcing an “ultra-conservative interpretation of Islam” and “incapable of reviving the Afghan economy.”
“In short, a country of nearly 40 million people — individuals whom we sought to help for two decades — has been condemned to a future of repression and privation and likely will be an incubator for Islamist extremism in the years ahead,” Petraeus said.
