Saying Goodbye to Afghanistan

Afghanistan. U.S. troops have been leaving for years, fast, then slowly, then fast again. There is some kind of peace deal between the United States and the Taliban, but it doesn’t involve peace. The Afghan government isn’t even a party to it.

Russia—which lost its own war in Afghanistan a generation ago--may have been paying the Taliban to kill U.S. troops.

Soon, though, Afghanistan will ostensibly be on its own again. What’s next, aside from more war, of course.

To help us understand all of this, we have Kathy Gannon. She is a veteran reporter with the Associated Press based in Pakistan and Afghanistan. She witnessed the Taliban’s victory in 1996, the U.S. invasion in 2001, and has won numerous awards for her work. She is the author of I is for Infidel: From Holy War to Holy Terror in Afghanistan.

Recorded 7/21/20The lay of the landWhat the Taliban wantsTaliban VS Kabul The strength of Afghanistan’s warlordsRumors of bounties on U.S. soldiersNo one wants chaos in Afghanistan

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