In your opinion, should we have remained in Afghanistan or was the total withdrawal correct?

CPT Jack Durish — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:11:08 -0400

For the purposes of this discussion, let's put aside the manner in which the final withdrawal was executed. We can discuss that issue separately as a matter of tactics. The decision to withdraw was more strategic, more political.

Here is your opportunity to respond anonymously. Active duty personnel tend to be rightfully circumspect in voicing political opinions. Veterans like me have no such restriction and can be the voice of those still serving, or simply shoot off our mouths with our own opinions.

IMO, we should have left a small force as we did in Europe following WWII to deter Soviet aggression, and in Korea following the fighting there to deter Communist expansion. In both of those cases, the presence of American forces worked to keep the peace and prevented Communist expansion. Given the resources of Free Europe and South Korea, and their contributions to free world trade, the US had a vital interest in maintaining the peace.

Given the vital mineral resources of Afghanistan, the US should have a vital interest in preventing them from falling into the hands of potential adversaries such as a resurgent Russia and an ever growing belligerent China. Also, it seems that a very small American force subjected to little risk was able, and could be expected to continue, to support the elected government in Kabul.

Still, that is one veteran's opinion. What is yours?

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 25 at 2021 11:17 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:17:08 -0400

Personally I thought we needed to leave at some point in time, but face it this is a disaster.

Response by Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth made Aug 25 at 2021 11:18 AM

Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:18:29 -0400

I think it was time to leave. BUT we didn't need to leave wholesale. I believe we could have kept a "small" advisory force in place with the embassy for the AFGHAN government. We could have kept Bagram open and running as the US hub and not had the out posts or FOB's...that way we still maintained a presence if we needed to thump every so often. It is strategic in nature because of the rare minerals and location.

Response by MSG George Hernlen made Aug 25 at 2021 11:43 AM

MSG George Hernlen — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:43:41 -0400

I believe that a total withdrawal was not a smart move. The small contingent of soldiers that was in country seemed to be keeping the status quo. It gave the US a footprint to operate from, keeping an eye on Afghanistan and Pakistan. There is no other location in the area close enough to operate from… over the horizon defense requires a location close enough function. Just my opinion.

Response by CSM Chuck Stafford made Aug 25 at 2021 11:48 AM

CSM Chuck Stafford — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:48:32 -0400

CPT Jack Durish Since the mission transitioned to a support role in 2014, the casualties in Afghanistan are commensurate to Soldier deaths in Texas. For less than 3K soldier presence, the peace was being preserved, with 2nd and 3rd order benefits of bases in the area, continued modernization. The war on "ideas" western vs islamic fundamentalism couldn't be won in less than several generations -- 1) the older folks weren't going to be won over 2) some of the middle age folks could be when their kids had a future to look forward to 3) and the new generation would grow up in the new hybrid culture --- Only until the new generation started having kids would the ideas have any gravitas. Less than 3K boots on the ground in a support role is not too great a burden to bear for the greatest nation on earth -- and now the 20 year investment is squandered -- just my $.02

Response by LTC Kevin B. made Aug 25 at 2021 12:22 PM

LTC Kevin B. — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 12:22:21 -0400

20 years was enough. Time to move along to the next mission.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 25 at 2021 1:14 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 13:14:20 -0400

Under Bush we turned our attention away from the stated mission and started working on Nation Building. We then managed to invest billions of dollars into their infrastructure, education, etc. Tens, if not hundreds of billions! This continued under Obama and part of Trump's terms. Trump took the focus back off of nation building and put it back where it rightfully belonged - suppressing terrorism. If I remember correctly, the last 18 months we had ZERO casualties. And while he did promise to "get us out" his military advisors said no - and he did back off of that push.

Keeping a couple thousand troops on the ground should have been the call. Do we need 100,000+? No, we don't. But we need presence there so Afghanistan does not become the terrorist central it was 20 years ago. I won't even go into mineral wealth under that soil. And someone else mentioned - this would have to be a generational plan. 20 years barely made a dent. All we've done is show the prize then yank it away just as they start to reach on their own for it.

I would not be surprised to see Russia or China steamroll into Afghanistan now.

Response by CW3 Michael Bodnar made Aug 25 at 2021 2:13 PM

CW3 Michael Bodnar — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 14:13:18 -0400

Yes and I truly believe one of the main reasons we were there was to stop the Chinese from connecting Beijing to Beirut. They will now have full access to trade goods all the way through Iran, Iraq, and Syria not to mention spread their money around in the region. The Russians will also get a piece of the pie and all of the Middle Eastern countries that we've befriended during our war on terror will turn to them because they offer fresh capital and they will allow these countries to operate freely. It's a crappy situation for certain and it's super frustrating to watch it all wither away in a matter of days. This administration truly messed this up - BAD!

Response by SSgt Christophe Murphy made Aug 25 at 2021 4:16 PM

SSgt Christophe Murphy — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 16:16:23 -0400

Leaving isn't the issue but the way we left was mishandled. You could make the argument that the only way to maintain peace in a destabilized region is to maintain some form of presence there. Look at WWII, Korea and Kuwait post Desert Storm. We kept a presence and it built better relationships in the future. We didn't keep a presence post WWI or in North Korea and we see how that went. But thats not the real argument. The issue is the abrupt removal plus all of the equipment left behind. What the Taliban can't use they will end up selling to our enemies which will bite us in the rear regardless of who ends up with the weapons. Plus you have the rushed process of evac of personnel of the Embassy, Americans in Country and locals who need to be removed as well. It's been a total mess

Response by SGT Mary G. made Aug 25 at 2021 6:07 PM

SGT Mary G. — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 18:07:02 -0400

I'm o.k. with not having an opinion about this, beyond thinking we should no longer have a combat presence in Afghanistan. I think everyone knew that leaving was inevitable, and that no matter when, leaving Afghanistan would not be easy; and that it would be widely criticized.
IMHO with China's Silk road project, the longer we stay the longer we aggravate China. With Russia's support and connections in Afghanistan China is ready to expand the project into Afghanistan. After all, Afghanistan does have observer status in Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) an alliance that was created 20 years ago, around about the time we went to Afghanistan.

Response by Lt Col Timothy Cassidy-Curtis made Aug 25 at 2021 7:12 PM

Lt Col Timothy Cassidy-Curtis — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 19:12:03 -0400

It seems that the matter of the withdrawal is much more nuanced than originally considered. While the basic sentiment seems to favor remaining, withdrawal might have been achievable if the circumstances were different. Exactly how would be another discussion.

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 25 at 2021 7:14 PM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 19:14:37 -0400

I don't think we should stay however I don't think we should pull full forces out. I think we should have built bases around the country as we did with South Korea. Place a base in Kabul or near make that the main base and place smaller outposts/bases round different parts of the country an maintain a key number of boots on the ground. Once we do this make the war officially over an just turn it into a permanent duty station with hazard pay as we do with other places.

Response by SPC Cathy Goessman made Aug 25 at 2021 11:13 PM

SPC Cathy Goessman — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 23:13:51 -0400

I'm on the fence.

The people of Afghanistan have a right to self determination and after so many years of us being there and them continuing with the corruption and half ass police/military force I'd have to say they chose their own path. They had every opportunity to pull themselves up and take advantage of the vast resources in their country. They failed to support the individuals trying to make something of Afghanistan. They largely squandered the money and support given to them. But can we really afford to allow the Taliban/ Al Qaeda/ ISIS the opportunity to seize a country for their own purposes? I don't think so.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Aug 25 at 2021 11:40 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 23:40:04 -0400

I am so done with Afghanistan. 20 years of training and the Afghan military was a paper tiger. I don’t what Afghans think when they walk by mansions of government officials.

I don’t think the Afghans would have improved if we gave them 10 more years. There military was fundamental flawed.

Response by Cpl Mark A. Morris made Aug 26 at 2021 4:13 AM

Cpl Mark A. Morris — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 04:13:29 -0400

I do not agree with nation building at the cost of our military persons lives and well being. I did agree with blasting them. Destroying everything of military value in the first three months and bushing them out.
The exit is a joke and should be performed on our terms. Not the Taliban's.

Response by Sgt Mervyn Russell made Aug 26 at 2021 7:21 AM

Sgt Mervyn Russell — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 07:21:15 -0400

I don't think we should have ever been there. What have we gained? thousands of American lives lost, This is Vietnam all over again.

Response by SSG Dave Johnston made Aug 26 at 2021 1:01 PM

SSG Dave Johnston — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 13:01:35 -0400

Korea was the last successful 'Nation Building' exercise that the US and its western allies was successfully involved in, and had the US reviewed the USSR's history in Afghanistan, or Britons, or any other invader going all the way back to Assyrian Empire, even reading Thomas Jefferson's dissertation on Islam... We, the US would have known that:
1. The various tribes that make up present day Afghanistan have been fighting outside influences since the days of Nimrod and nothing was going to change that...
2. When and where bribery and deceit are an accepted way of doing business, Nation building, as we have done in the past, wasn't going to happen.
3. Fundamental Islam wants no western/outside influence on its believers, and the followers of Islam will fight to the death to maintain that separation of cultures
4. This was going to be either a 'multi-generational' battle of ideologies, or a "Welcome to the stone spanking, Afghanistan", don't attack America again; or else...
Our arrogance has played a big part in where we, Western civilization, stand today in regards to what has happened in Afghanistan by not recognizing the Chameleon, Shirdal that lives there... As to exiting Afghanistan... Yes. but, not in the manor that 'Uncle Joe' or 'Aunt Jill' demanded... and the "not-Square" building in Arlington Va. should have performed the exit in a way that would not be reminiscent of Saigon, damn what an embarrassment that must be for the Sec. of Def, and his minions...

Response by CPT Lawrence Cable made Aug 26 at 2021 1:40 PM

CPT Lawrence Cable — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 13:40:11 -0400

I don't have a problem with the US getting out of Afghanistan, I do think the method sucked. The pull out without the direct threat of retaliation for any aggression, and the pullout of the Contractor support for the technical side of the Afghan Army and Air Force, plus the rather sudden abandonment of all the FOB's by US Forces kind of threw the Afghan Army under the bus. I don't think the country has much of a chance to become a stable state, but we just got out of bed and walked out on them.

Response by PVT Mark Whitcomb made Aug 26 at 2021 1:54 PM

PVT Mark Whitcomb — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 13:54:38 -0400

A "peacekeeping base" should have been maintained. a Division of allies would have been prudent.

Response by MSgt Mark Bucher made Aug 26 at 2021 5:27 PM

MSgt Mark Bucher — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 17:27:44 -0400

What was our mission after Osama? Is the US military in the nation building business? That runs totally against the lessons we supposedly learned after Vietnam. I see both sides of the argument concerning establishing a permanent base there. But again, what was our original mission going in? Where we screwed the pooch was back in 02 when we went into Iraq and forgot about Afghanistan. We effectively allowed the Taliban to rearm and regroup while we were searching for WMD's in Iraq.

Response by SPC Kevin Ford made Aug 26 at 2021 11:17 PM

SPC Kevin Ford — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 23:17:09 -0400

It was correct to leave. There was no amount of time we could have remained there to stabilize the country and then left leaving rainbows and kittens. Our military is not setup for nation building, particularly in nations that don't want to be built the way we are trying to build them. It was unfair to everyone we sent after the initial military invasion. We set them up for failure.

Response by SPC Donn Sinclair made Aug 27 at 2021 8:47 AM

SPC Donn Sinclair — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 08:47:06 -0400

Spare me the notions of Nation Building and wars of benign intervention. Every new administration, regardless the D or R behind their name thinks they're smarter than those they replaced. "They couldn't make it work, but we can. We're better, smarter people." In my day, it was McNamara's Whiz Kids. How many generations of Ivy League whiz kids have tried their hand since? Our original mission was to kill terrorists, (mainly bin Laden), and it was successful, till the politicians stuck their collective noses in. We should've made an orderly withdrawal as soon as bin Laden was dealt with. Instead, we found out the hard way why Afghanistan is called the Graveyard of Empires.

Response by SPC Steven Depuy made Aug 27 at 2021 12:58 PM

SPC Steven Depuy — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 12:58:21 -0400

I think we had to leave eventually, but should have done it differently. Worked with allies better, planned to get equipment out better, made people leave starting 90 days ahead, not closed down the air base until the end, making that the last point of departure. I never thought, and I am a dumb ass HVAC guy who once drove an M-113, so I have no credentials here, that the Afghan government would survive. But I never imagined it would fall apart like it did, and it seems no one else did. I just want to know the truth about what they left behind. I didn't remember the Afghans flying C-130's, did we give them some, were they not worth fixing, because there is so much politics involved here, whats the truth. Did they just get orders to get out last month, when they vanished over night, and shut off the power to the base leaving the Afghan AF unable to do much? The last guy was planning on being gone by May, so even though the whole thing is a shit show, the current guy gave them 90 days longer it seems. Whats the truth here? Anyone know? Its just a spin world now from both sides.

Response by SSG Edward Tilton made Aug 27 at 2021 7:44 PM

SSG Edward Tilton — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 19:44:16 -0400

What would we accomplish by staying??

Response by SGT Daniel Petitt made Sep 2 at 2021 8:58 AM

SGT Daniel Petitt — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 08:58:31 -0400

Withdrawal,if after 20 years of trying to solidify a Afghan Government did not work,then 25 or 30 wouldn’t either.