NEW DELHI: The sudden withdrawal of American troops has resulted in the Taliban taking over from Afghanistan and plunging it in chaos, but this is not the first time that the US has left a country to fend for itself after ‘intervention’.
Vietnam in 1970s and Iraq in 2011 bear testimony to this fact. Experts say the US actions are in self-interest and done in response to its failed wars. “The financial and physical costs are eventually considered far outweighing the expected strategic benefits of remaining there. Domestic political considers sometimes also play a role in the withdrawal decisions too,” Moscow-based political analyst Andrew Korybko said.
According to Korybko, the US might promise to continue economically, militarily, and supporting their proxy governments there, but this isn’t always possible if they’ve been overthrown like what just happened in Afghanistan. “In such situations, the US tries to flexibly adapt to changing circumstances (which are oftentimes foreseeable in advance but not always taken seriously by decision makers),” he added.
A researcher based in Washington, who did not wish to be named, said that the American actions raise concern among allies and partners with regard to dependability. “The way that the withdrawal occurred like abandoning the (Bagram) base at night and similar decisions are evidence of it.”
Korybko said the overall impact of the US’ abandonment is that it risks creating a security and strategic void that will inevitably be filled by others, either state actors or non-state ones. “Depending on the outcome, this could either stabilise or destabilise their regions even more. It’ll require closer coordination between relevant stakeholders in each case to ensure that the worst-case scenarios don’t transpire.”
Sanjay Pulipaka, a senior fellow at the Delhi Policy Group, said the US ‘interventions’ have not always been unsuccessful like after the Second World War in Europe. “A common factor in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, was the presence of porous borders and constant supply of weapons from an external actor. The ability of an external actor to muddy waters created conditions for failure of the US interventions.”
In the case of Iraq, Pulipaka said, the US intervention started with an objective to identify/remove weapons of mass destruction, and nation-building was added to the objectives. Therefore, the absence of clearly defined military objectives contributed to the intervention’s failure.
“When it intervened in Afghanistan, the conditions for a successful mission were very much in place. The overthrow of the Taliban received considerable support from people. However, the US, instead of focusing on completing its mission, ventured into Iraq. As a consequence, it conducted two massive interventions in two countries simultaneously.”
The senior fellow said other major powers have also faced failure like the Soviets and added that American interventions have not undermined the foundations of the US economy.
AI cancels Kabul flight, airlines divert routes
New Delhi: An Air India commercial flight scheduled to fly to Afghanistan was cancelled on Monday as its airspace was closed for commercial flights. After the closure of airspace, flights between Delhi and the West, are bound to take a longer alternate routes. An official from the airline said that Air India’s Chicago-Delhi was enroute when the restrictions came into force. The flight was diverted for refuelling before continuing its journey to Delhi.
‘World needs to be united in supporting Afghans’
New Delhi: India appealed the international community to come together for supporting the people of Afghanistan. At the UN, New Delhi added that the situation is of concern. “Afghanistan has already seen enough bloodshed in the past. It is time for the international community to come together unitedly, rising above any partisan interests, to support Afghans in their desire for peace, stability and security in the country,” it said.