Afghanistan: A War That Was Never Our War

Recently we received new documents and proof that the US government provided false and manipulated information about the War in Afghanistan to the American people in an effort to continue to jusify the continuous efforts put into “winning” the war. For some people this led to outrage, anger and disbelief. For the more intiated of us it was merely a confirmation of what we already knew for a long time. I’m not surprised nor disturbed by this turn of events as i accept it as a political component of modern warfare. Nations all over the world engage in such activities in order to uplift spirits, gain continuous support of military endeavors and sway the public opinion in their favor. The US did the same in Vietnam and Iraq and Russia simply does it all the time on all levels of politics and social-economic developments.

The problem here however is that US leadership isn’t trying to solidify public support for a well thought out and efficient strategy. Instead they’re doing it just to keep the war going with the hope of finding a winning solution..eventually…In other words they don’t have the faintest idea of how to “win” the war and apart from that they don’t seem too interested in constructive feedback. Here lies the true weakness of the world’s foremost superpower. They’ve become so accostumed to their own military prowess and might that many leaders perceive the US military to be flawless and that all obstacles in a long term military campaign are the cause of third parties or sources outside themselves.

The problem in Afghanistan isn’t based on military capacity, might or will. Instead it’s based on perception. Let me explain what i mean by that. The thing is the War in Afghanistan was already won in the first months of the campaign with the neutralization of the Taliban government. That was the war as far as the US was concerned. Anything that came afterwards was an attempt to transform the very essence of Afghanistan in something it could never be. A flourishing democracy. By doing so the US hoped to gain complete control and oversight over the Jihadi terror networks inside the region. A noble cause indeed and not unachievable in any sense. However the way they went about it ruined the objective from the moment it was confirmed.  

One would ask why turning Afghanistan into a democracy through continuous US military presence, reformation and financial support was doomed from the beginning? You can find the answer in the cultural dynamics of Afghanistan and it’s long and chaotic history. The thing is the most essential thing that the US didn’t realize is that they stepped in a tribal conflict first and foremost rather than a conventional war or an counterinsurgency campaign. The Taliban was born from a tribal war in the early 90s that had them come out on top as the most dominant military faction. After Afghanistan was torn apart by the Russians the decade before. The Russians destroyed Afghanistan in every sense of the word and made sure that outside influence and interference would forever be frowned upon by the Afghan generations to come.

As a result the Afghan people took matters into their own hands and decided the form the Islamic State of Afghanistan through an agreement known as the Peshawar Accord. However Afghan tribal militias destroyed any hope of a prosperous state by dismissing the agreement and trying to take power for themselves. These militias were backed by various states such as Pakistan, Iran and Saudi-Arabia. In the midst of all this and through the frustration of the Afghan people the Taliban was born. Speaking a language every Afghan could relate to. The language of religion. By using religious motives and ushering their hate for outside influences they were able to quickly and effciently defeat their opposition and become the most prominent faction in Afghanistan. Other militias and opposing factions didn’t accept this of course and continued to wage war against the Taliban.

Then 9/11 happened and Al-Qaeada pulled foreign powers to Afghanistan like a magnet. What many didn’t realize is the fact that the US didn’t start a war in Afghanistan but that they merely stepped into a civil war which had been festering for almost a decade long. The thing is the Civil war in Afghanistan never stopped. It merely transitioned into a new phase when half the world invaded the country. So where lies the solution…

I’m going to give you a basic explanation of what my strategy would be and what it would come down to. My strategy would be very similar to what the US has employed in Syria and their allegiance with Kurdish forces in the region. The most important aspect of this strategy is to let the Civil war rage on between the various factions in Afghanistan. I would’ve done this already when the Taliban government was neutralized. Get the invasion force out and employ special task forces to hunt down Al-Qaeda commanders. As for the country itself i would form an alliance with a strong Afghan militia (or multiple if they’re compatible) with a non-radical background and relatively outside of the corrupt Afghan political system. I would finance them, train them, equip them and give them the best possible foundation to win the Civil war. I would send zero troops to support them on the battlefield. Instead i would campaign for foreign or regional PMC’s or mercenaries to provide military support as to avoid clear references to a western power. Stealth air strikes can be used to help give the supported militia a strategic edge. Offcially those strikes can be justified as attacks on high level members of Al-Qaeada.

So let’s say our supported militia wins the Civil war. Would Afghanistan be democratic? Would it shape itself into a prosperous and wealthy nation? No, i don’t think that it will. But it will mean a nation where jihadi movements are the opposition instead of the ruling power. A nation that is ruled by Afghan people rather than western forces which will in turn neutralize a large portion of the Taliban’s social and psychological leverage. It would mean a stalemate in terms of the radical developments in the region. As for the PMC’s i would let their contracts continue as they can provide additional security tasks and hunt down members of opposing militias such as the Taliban in order to maintain the strategic edge of our supported militia. By doing so neutralizing the fear of many PMC’s that they will be out of work when the war ends. 

In my opinion it was a massive mistake to let the Northern Alliance dissolve itself and join the Karzai administration. Rather i would’ve continued to support the Northern Alliance and help them become the ruling faction in Afghanistan far way from the corrupt political system that was institutionalised instead. The western world has an inherent flaw that inspires them to shove their limited political ideologies down the throat of every country they engage with regardless of that country’s own cultural, poltical and historic background. Therefore dooming most foreign political, social and economic reformation campaigns right from the start.

Many experts have called the Afghan civil conflict a proxy-war with players such as India, Iran, Pakistan and the US aiming to increase their influence in the region by supporting various factions and militias. But in my opinion the US had the greatest foothold in their allegiance with the Northern Alliance and by being able to employ independent and regional PMC’s for additional support. The most important weapon in Afganistan is money. The US has plenty of it as it demonstrated in their spending on the war in the last 18 years.

Again, my strategy would not incorporate democracy, nor will it mean the end of all conflict in Afghanistan. It would not turn Afghanistan into a wealthy nation. Instead it would lay the foundation for years of turmoil and struggle to come. However it would mean a stalemate with radical forces in the region and halt the developments and growth of terror organizations within the region. More importantly it would save billions of dollars and the lives of thousands of US troops. Let the Afghan militias conquer their own land back and privatise additional military support. Liberation should have an Afghan face backed by a western skull.

Even today i think this strategy still holds merit. The National Front of Afghanistan is basically the Northern Alliance reborn and includes the most numerous ethnic groups in the country who seem to be completely excluded from any talks with the US or the Taliban. They form the perfect candidate to fill the void once the US forces retreat. A tactic that proved to be extremely efficient in Syria. We have to assume that Pakistan will do everything in its power to reinforce the Taliban once the US is gone and help them in overthrowing the weak Afghani government. In the National Front we have a party which speaks to the majority of Afghanistan and has the power to nullify the Taliban’s propaganda and is used to fighting them on the battlefield. Through their efforts the Afghan people can regain their voice and put their ambitions of a better Afghanistan into effect.  

However the US has invested so much time, money and resources in the current Afghan administration and the Karzai administration before that it will be unlikely that they will drop them now. As for the Afghan people, they cry for a liberator amongst themselves not one created by outsiders. Instead of being the prominent force themselves what the US really needs is an actor to act in its stead whilst being supported on the background by US resources. The “White Savior” concept has failed. The Afghan people didn’t accept it and they never will. Only through proxy warfare and assymetrical strategies the US can hope to achieve the unrealistic objectives they had set all those years ago and truly have a positive and lasting impact on Afghanistan.