Carter Malkasian was the senior adviser to Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, from 2015 to 2019 and is the author of “War Comes to Garmser: Thirty Years of Conflict on the Afghan Frontier.”
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The deal signed in Doha is a major achievement, but will require rigorous enforcement of the terms to succeed.
Editor’s Note: Afghanistan is America’s longest war, and recent attempts to negotiate an end with the Taliban appear to have failed, at least for now. Many Americans are asking whether it is worth staying in Afghanistan as the war drags on. Carter Malkasian, one of America’s premier Afghanistan experts, examines the most important argument for staying—that Afghanistan might again be a haven for anti-American terrorist groups—and from there raises questions that should guide policymakers considering a withdrawal.
Daniel Byman