Out of Afghanistan Part 2
On the eve of their withdrawal, Anthony Tucker-Jones assesses the achievements of the International Security Assistance Force and considers whether Afghanistan can remain stable as it draws down
The legacy of Nato and ISAF’s achievements in Afghanistan now hangs in the balance. Any residual Western military commitment rests in the hands of the country’s two presidential candidates. The outgoing President Hamid Karzai continually made it clear he would not negotiate any basing agreement with Washington – such a decision rests with Afghanistan’s future president.
In the West, President Karzai has been seen as an ungrateful ally . . .