The Americans are leaving Afghanistan to the responsibility of the Kabul government, but it remains to be seen how much this can hold up without adequate military support. The question arises from the news that the US air force has carried out a series of raids against the Taliban, to slow down the offensive.
The advance of the fundamentalists that began in May appears almost overwhelming: they have conquered more than half of the country’s over 400 districts, often without even fighting, and are now close to Kandahar. Right near the city that was the heart of Mullah Omar’s rise, the Air Force hit hard. Other attacks were carried out in Helmand.
The fighter-bombers, writes the New York Times, departed from an airport outside the country, as the large Bagram base was abandoned by US troops in recent weeks. According to sources in the American daily, the operations should have been conducted from a base in the United Arab Emirates. The Taliban called the attacks a violation of the Doha agreement, threatening unspecified “consequences”.
In reality, the bombings from above cannot greatly affect the fate of the clash, and if anything they highlight the inability of the government forces to defend the country without adequate external support. The military often abandon positions before the fighting begins, surrendering weapons to the Taliban only on the basis of threats. The situation seems compromised, to the point that yesterday the Kabul government imposed a night curfew on 31 of the 34 Afghan provinces.
According to an anonymous official quoted by the Now, the raids could serve to rebuild the morale of government forces. The same purpose would have the power show achieved by deploying a B-52 bomber, one of those based in Qatar, in the sky over Kabul in recent days. But it is unlikely that airborne operations will be able to change the overall strategic framework, also because, according to Pentagon sources quoted by the US newspaper, air strikes will be used only in particular circumstances, and not as usual practice.
On the ground, the “Koranic students” enjoy a “strategic push”, as General Mark A. Milley, the American Chief of Staff, defined it. The indications seem clear: the idea is that of the military conquest of the country.
This, he stressed Joe Biden, is in open contradiction with the commitments made in Doha, according to which even the fundamentalists seek “a negotiated solution to the conflict”. The US president reiterated in a telephone conversation with Ashraf Ghani its support for the government recognized by the international community.
To make this support concrete, Biden has decided on an allocation of 3.3 billion dollars which, after the approval of Congress, will allow the Afghan forces to equip themselves with new aircraft and ammunition. The White House has also allocated 266 million dollars for humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, in addition to one hundred million already released “to deal with migratory emergencies” linked to the country, that is to meet the needs of the interpreters and other Afghan collaborators of the troops. Westerners, at risk of reprisals by the fundamentalists.
The Doha talks between the Taliban and the Kabul government are progressing extremely slowly, and indeed have not even served to obtain a brief ceasefire in recent days, on the occasion of the Islamic holidays for Eid al Adha. The United States asks the “Koranic students” to seriously engage in negotiations with the government of Ashraf Ghani, stressing – through the words of Jalina Porter, spokesman for the State Department – that “the world is not willing to accept a conquest of power with the force. A negotiated agreement between the Islamic Republic and the Taliban is the only way to end 40 years of war and bring Afghans to peace, “said the spokesperson, also insisting on the need for an end to violence against the Afghans who worked alongside. of Westerners.
But with the troops now almost completely out of the country, the American position in the confrontation with the fundamentalists seems weak. The only significant point on which to press is the immense financial effort that will be required to rebuild Afghanistan. “Legitimacy and assistance to any Afghan government will only be possible if that government has respect for human rights,” Porter added. For now, an unheard warning.
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