Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Comment: As the Taliban take Kabul, America’s failure is complete

Comment: As the Taliban take Kabul, America’s failure is complete

If the most visceral image from the fall of Saigon was a helicopter taking off, then in Kabul it was the scenes of utter chaos at the airport - the small patch of territory the US still controls.
The speed of the Taliban advance clearly came as a surprise to the Americans. One wonders why, given the amount of intelligence to which they have access.

Its failure in nation-building is now complete. The Afghan state, continuously crippled by corruption, whose armed forces unable to rely on US airpower and other military assistance simply evaporated. As many Afghans suggest, it is not that the Taliban is especially strong but that the government was weak.

Assembling and then supporting the Afghan army was a centrepiece of the US’s exit strategy. It now lies in tatters, as the country’s military simply disintegrated in the face of Taliban advancements. Indeed, many of the weapons the US spent billions supplying the Afghan army are now in the hands of a terrifyingly brutal force.

“Inexcusable” and “heart-breaking” are some of the words being deployed on all sides. Minister Ben Wallace, a former soldier, struggled in tears this morning, admitting our ability to stop new terror forces gathering strength there will be sub-optimal. “The West has done what it’s done,” was as much as he could muster.

Former US national security adviser, John Bolton, went as far as to say the west looks like “suckers”. As our defence editor writes, “What next for Afghanistan? Don’t expect help from Biden.”

During the 20-year engagement, the US lost 2,448 military personnel and many more lives of US contractors. Yet despite the cost in blood and treasure, and the humiliating end, President Biden may not suffer an immediate political cost. Much of the US public has long lost interest in Afghanistan.

But assaults on US forces abroad, or even an attack on the homeland, would leave him vulnerable to the charge of incompetence. And then there are veterans of the Afghan war both here and in the US and Afghanistan — what must they now be thinking?

Trump signed a deal with the Taliban in February 2020, but it is Biden that must take responsibility for many of the last few days’ events, to which he appears to be a naive by-stander.

The UK Government appears equally flat-footed. The Foreign Secretary was on holiday. Even the Prime Minister recalling Parliament feels like an admission that doing anything is better than doing nothing.

We simply cannot abandon the Afghans who assisted Western and government forces — men and women who will now be fearing for their lives. Providing them with safe refuge in Britain is not only our moral duty — without it, we cannot expect others to help us in future conflicts.

Many of us looked in in horror as the Taliban took Kabul and hoisted its flag above the presidential palace. Yet we did so from the safety of Britain. For ordinary Afghans, the reality is far graver.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
China Presses Netherlands to “properly” Resolve the Nexperia Seizure as Supply Chain Risks Grow
Merz Attacks Migrants, Sparks Uproar, and Refuses to Apologize: “Ask Your Daughters”
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
×