The withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan

[Grace]

As I understand it, Former Pres. Trump planned to withdraw troops by May of 2021. Biden extended that to August 2021 in order to give Afghan forces more time to get their act together. Now Biden and his administration are getting the blame for the current chaos. Is there more to the story that I am not understanding?

The Afghanistan exit was very poorly planned and the lack of understanding the power of the Taliban falls squarely on Biden. But there are too many layers in the Afghanistan situation to even question the outcome differences with any President, present or prior, in relation to the troop withdrawal and the Taliban take over. We have to remember that this all started 20 years ago.

The questions that need to be asked are ...

Can the United States ever change a country’s government when that government is based in a tyrannical Islamic theocracy?

And why don’t the Afghans have the incentive and willpower to fight for their future, but yet, the Taliban do?

[Soloist]

As I understand it, Former Pres. Trump planned to withdraw troops by May of 2021. Biden extended that to August 2021 in order to give Afghan forces more time to get their act together. Now Biden and his administration are getting the blame for the current chaos. Is there more to the story that I am not understanding?

The Afghanistan exit was very poorly planned and the lack of understanding the power of the Taliban falls squarely on Biden. But there are too many layers in the Afghanistan situation to even question the outcome differences with any President, present or prior, in relation to the troop withdrawal and the Taliban take over. We have to remember that this all started 20 years ago.

The questions that need to be asked are ...

Can the United States ever change a country’s government when that government is based in a tyrannical Islamic theocracy?

And why don’t the Afghans have the incentive and willpower to fight for their future, but yet, the Taliban do?

This mess actually started prior to world war 2... Failing to know the history behind the Muslim people will result in repeating the Russian mistake, the American mistake and so on and so on. No different then Hitler failing to learn from Napoleon

[Soloist]

I'm wondering what a Trump administration would have done in May, had they still been in power, and would it look a lot different than what we see happening right now under Biden?

I think he wouldn't have pulled troops out. Now who knows what he would have done... I suppose there is some document detailing the plans, but there is a reason these things often get put off for the next president to deal with...

[Ernie]

I'm wondering what a Trump administration would have done in May, had they still been in power, and would it look a lot different than what we see happening right now under Biden?

I think he wouldn't have pulled troops out.

Even though he said he was going to have them all out by May?

[Ernie]

So I don't know much about military schemes and logistics, but it seems like basic common sense to me to extract the people you want to take out of a country first, before extracting the military personnel. Is there something I am missing?

[Grace]

So I don't know much about military schemes and logistics, but it seems like basic common sense to me to extract the people you want to take out of a country first, before extracting the military personnel. Is there something I am missing?

I agree. Extracting the people working in the Embassy, and any other workers in the country before removing the troops would have been common sense. Also removing the troops should have been a slow covert operation without the public's knowledge, not something broadcasted with deadlines for all the world to know, especially the Taliban. Although I am sure it would have been leaked out eventually.

And there is something you are missing but you requested at the onset, you don't want to discuss those matters.

[PeterG]

So I don't know much about military schemes and logistics, but it seems like basic common sense to me to extract the people you want to take out of a country first, before extracting the military personnel. Is there something I am missing?

My understanding (subject to correction) is that the American civilian personnel left in the country after the military withdrawal were people like diplomats who would normally be working in any foreign country—Afghanistan, Canada, Italy, China, Nigeria, Thailand, etc. The hope was that Afghanistan would be a "normal" foreign country with a normal, stable relationship with the United States. Sadly, it hasn't turned out that way...

[Ken]

I'm wondering what a Trump administration would have done in May, had they still been in power, and would it look a lot different than what we see happening right now under Biden?

I think he wouldn't have pulled troops out. Now who knows what he would have done... I suppose there is some document detailing the plans, but there is a reason these things often get put off for the next president to deal with...

Troop withdrawals were already baked in. Trump had already reduced troop levels in Afghanistan from around 15,000 in 2018 to about 2500 by 2020. That means only about 1000 combat troops for a country larger than California and far more mountainous since the rest are support troops. Which is honestly not even enough to hold the perimeter around a single city. In 2020 he simply cut a deal with the Taliban to hold off on any attacks on American troops until the withdrawal was complete in the summer of 2021.

Reversing that policy would have mean surging tens of thousands of troops back into Afghanistan and re-engaging battle with the Taliban. I don't see either Trump or Biden doing that. And to what end? They had been surging troops into Afghanistan for 20 years to no effect. Withdrawal was the right decision and I think the timing is completely irrelevant after that.

Honestly, from my point of view, the fact that the Afghan government has collapsed so fast actually underscores the wisdom of both Trump and Biden to withdraw on an accelerated schedule. Because the speed at which the government has fallen just underscores the complete fiction that the US had any kind of meaningful and competent ally in Afghanistan. If the Afghan army and government were actually doing a competent job of repelling the Taliban and holding their ground it would have argued for possible extended US involvement to help them roll back Taliban gains. The fact that they instead seem to have vanished into a puff of smoke suggests that we had no viable ally there in the first place and it was past time to go.

[Ken]

So I don't know much about military schemes and logistics, but it seems like basic common sense to me to extract the people you want to take out of a country first, before extracting the military personnel. Is there something I am missing?

I agree. Extracting the people working in the Embassy, and any other workers in the country before removing the troops would have been common sense. Also removing the troops should have been a slow covert operation without the public's knowledge, not something broadcasted with deadlines for all the world to know, especially the Taliban. Although I am sure it would have been leaked out eventually.

And there is something you are missing but you requested at the onset, you don't want to discuss those matters.

I don't think you can withdraw thousands of troops from a country in secret. It is a huge operation. There were no doubt Taliban spies scattered all over the place in and around US bases who were reporting every detail back to their masters via cell phones or satellite phones.

[temporal1]

I'm wondering what a Trump administration would have done in May, had they still been in power, and would it look a lot different than what we see happening right now under Biden?

I think he wouldn't have pulled troops out.

Even though he said he was going to have them all out by May?

It’s impossible to say.
The only thing that can be known is, DJT had unpredicted success with averting military violence.
That was not enough for many U.S. voters. Including some COs. So we will never know.