Afghanistan
Obviously Afghanistan has been the primary focal point in the War on Terror since September 11, 2001 when the United States was attacked and about 3,000 people were murdered. The US government identified Osama bin Laden and the Al-Qaeda organization based in and allied with the Taliban, the Islamic government in Afghanistan, as the perpetrators of the attacks. While political and military mistakes have been made in this 10 year conflict, we have been successful and destroying the violent Al-Qaeda and Taliban leadership and allowing a government friendly to its neighbors to hopefully evolve. This evolution will take time and be difficult, so our commitment should not waver, but our need for regular military forces in Afghanistan has ended. Continuing to watch and appropriately react to developments in Afghanistan will be an important political issue.

Our Friends the Taliban

9/7/21
from The Wall Street Journal,
9/6/21:

Biden is relying on the group with ties to al Qaeda. Good luck. Washington sees safe passage as a first step to rolling back sanctions on a Taliban-led government.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. is negotiating with the Taliban on resolving issues that are preventing American citizens and vulnerable Afghans from leaving Afghanistan through charter flights, while other countries are working to open the airport in Kabul for international flights within days. Speaking at a press conference here with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and their Qatari counterparts, Mr. Blinken said the U.S. had spoken to the Taliban in the past few hours. Mr. Blinken said the latest indications from the Taliban are that they would allow American citizens or others to leave on charter flights if they all have proper documents, but flights with mixed groups with and without proper identification won’t be allowed to depart. “Because all of these people are grouped together, that’s meant that flights have not been allowed to go,” Mr. Blinken told reporters. The Biden administration has faced bipartisan criticism over American citizens left behind, but Mr. Blinken rejected the idea of a hostage situation with Americans being prevented from leaving. Somewhere around 100 American citizens who want to leave are left inside Afghanistan, he said.

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