Afghan Collapse Follows Expensive, Mistake-Riddled US Reconstruction Effort: Watchdog

Contact Your Elected Officials
The Epoch Times Header

The collapse of the Afghan government followed a mistake-riddled U.S. mission to reconstruct the country after invading in 2001 shortly after 9/11, a watchdog said Tuesday.

“If the goal was to rebuild and leave behind a country that can sustain itself and pose little threat to U.S. national security interests, the overall picture is bleak,” John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), wrote in the 140-page report (pdf).

Sopko’s team performed more than 760 interviews and reviewed thousands of government documents to produce the report, as part of a body of work that included criminal investigations that led to 160 convictions.

The United States spent $145 billion trying to rebuild Afghanistan and its institutions while the Department of Defense spent an additional $837 billion on the war there since U.S. troops landed in October 2001.

U.S. goals included eliminating al-Qaeda, decimating the Taliban, building Afghan security forces, and helping the civilian government become legitimate. But apart from several areas of improvement, such as raising rates of education, “overall progress has been elusive and the prospects for sustaining this progress are dubious,” Sopko said.

President Joe Biden ordered the full withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan this year. As troops withdrew this month, the Taliban rapidly captured key areas of the country. The terrorist group took the presidential palace in Kabul over the weekend and declared Afghanistan an Islamic emirate.

U.S. leaders were caught off guard by the takeover, rushing to evacuate the U.S. Embassy in Kabul and Afghans who helped the United States during the 20-year war.

Biden appeared Monday to defend his decision and blame a host of others, including former President Donald Trump, who set into motion the withdrawal. “This did unfold more quickly than we anticipated,” he said in a short speech in Washington.

The botched withdrawal is part of a pattern, according to the SIGAR report. For instance, the U.S. “government consistently underestimated the amount of time required to rebuild Afghanistan and created unrealistic timelines and expectations that prioritized spending quickly,” the office found. That led to increased corruption and undermined the effectiveness of various programs.

“The U.S. government did not understand the Afghan context and therefore failed to tailor its efforts accordingly,” Sopko also said.

“We were devoid of a fundamental understanding of Afghanistan,” Douglas Lute, who coordinated Afghanistan strategy at the National Security Council from 2007 to 2013, told the SIGAR. “We didn’t know what we were doing.”

By Zachary Stieber

Read Original Article on TheEpochTimes.com

The Epoch Times
The Epoch Timeshttps://www.theepochtimes.com/
Tired of biased news? The Epoch Times is truthful, factual news that other media outlets don't report. No spin. No agenda. Just honest journalism like it used to be.

Science Has Finally Come For Transgenderism

British biologist Richard Dawkins said “trans women are men,” calling transgender ideology a movement that undermines biological truth.

Trump is Coming for Antifa

Liberals say there is no organization called “Antifa”. Conservatives say Antifa is real and we now know how it is funded. What should we believe?

The Pentagon vs. the Free Press (or What’s Left of It)

Reporting what the government would rather not have reported is not just an essential function but a duty of a free press in a representative system.

Truth & Treason

World War II has long served as a compelling...

Is an American confusing England for Britain a problem?

The difficulty is when Americans try to engage with British politics, where they keep saying "England" rather than "Britain."

Artillery Fire at Vance’s Marine Corps Celebration Sparks Friction With Newsom

Marine officials said firing artillery at Camp Pendleton is routine and disrupting traffic on I-5 is unnecessary, but Newsom closed portions of I-5 anyway.

FBI Director Says Hunting Stand Found Near Trump’s Air Force One Exit Area

FBI Dir. Kash Patel and the Secret Service found a hunting stand overlooking an Air Force One exit area near Palm Beach Airport before Trump’s arrival.

Transgender Identification Losing Ground Among Young Americans, Report Says

A newly released report suggests transgender identification among Generation Z in America has lost momentum after peaking in 2023.

US Warns Hamas Planning Attack on Palestinian Civilians in Apparent Violation of Gaza Cease-Fire

The U.S. State Dept said it has “credible reports” that the Hamas terrorist group could violate the cease-fire with an attack on Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

Army Corps of Engineers to Pause $11 Billion in Projects During Shutdown: Vought

Russ Vought, director of the White House’s OMB, has added to the growing pile of federal projects paused during the government shutdown.

Trump Signs Executive Order Putting New Restrictions on Federal Hiring

Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to restrict hiring, with exceptions for immigration, security, and political appointees.

Trump Says He Has Authorized Covert CIA Operations in Venezuela

President Trump authorized covert CIA operations in Venezuela, expanding U.S. assets there to increase pressure on President Nicolás Maduro’s regime.

Trump Posthumously Awards Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom

President Trump posthumously awarded Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the White House Rose Garden on Oct 14, Charlie's birthday.
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

MAGA Business Central