Afghanistan: Time for an exit strategy

Two weeks ago, President Obama announced that the US would bring down its troops in Afghanistan from 9,800 to 8,400, changing his original plan to reduce the number to 5,500. His decision suggests that conditions on the ground are not as promising as he expected them to be, and maintaining a larger number of troops is important as he believes “it is in our national security interests…that we give our Afghan partners the best opportunities to succeed.” The president, however, did not spell out what success actually means.

Indeed, even if the US stations three times as many troops for another 15 years or more, the US cannot rescue Afghanistan from the quagmire in which it finds itself. That reminds us of the Vietnam War—a needlessly prolonged conflict with no prospect of victory—except that the war in Afghanistan is even more complicated and becoming increasingly intractable.

Dr. Alon Ben-Meir

Professor of International Relations

Centre for Global Affairs, NYU