By Daniel DePetris
Standing behind a lectern in the White House Treaty Room on April 14, President Joe Biden made one of the most fateful U.S. foreign policy decisions of the last two decades: after 2,488 U.S. fatalities, over 20,000 wounded and $2.6 trillion, the U.S. military is pulling out of Afghanistan by September 11 (at the latest). For Biden, a man who never bought into counterinsurgency, withdrawing the last 2,500 U.S. troops (or is it 3,500?) was a simple act of common-sense.
"We cannot continue the cycle of extending or expanding our military presence in Afghanistan, hoping to create ideal conditions for the withdrawal, and expecting a different result," Biden told the nation that day.
Since then, Biden faced heat from pundits and analysts who continue to believe saving Afghanistan is integral to protecting the United States. Various explanations were floated as to why leaving a futile, endless loop of a war is a major mistake. For The Washington Post columnist Max Boot, the U.S. troop withdrawal will lead to a complete Taliban victory that will jeopardize whatever gains in democracy and human rights Afghanistan has made. Bret Stephens of The New York Times wrote that losing in Afghanistan will hurt U.S. credibility in the face of allies and adversaries alike.
This piece was originally published in Newsweek on April 22, 2021. Read more HERE.