IR 002: Lecture 20 Flashcards
What year did the US recognize Afghanistan as a independent country?
1921
How did the US provide assistance to Afghanistan during the cold war?
- Arms
- Development projects (dams, schools, roads, etc.)
Did the US or the Soviet Union have a larger influence in Afghanistan during the Cold War?
The Soviet Union
How did the US respond to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?
The US supported the Afghanistan resistance
What year did the Soviet Union invade Afghanistan?
1979
Why did the US fear a Soviet invasion of the Middle East?
- Middle East provided 25% of US oil imports
What was the covert US intervention against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?
Mujahideen (Holy Warriors)
Why is the Soviet-Afghan war so important?
- First global Holy War
- Afghanistans radicalization
- Pakistan radicalization
What was the outcome of the Soviet- Afghan war?
- The Soviet Union withdrew
- A Civil war began in Afghanistan from 1992-1996
What year did the Soviet Union withdraw from Afghanistan?
1989
How did the US respond to the Soviet Union’s withdraw from Afghanistan?
- US lost interest in Afghanistan
- No assistance during the Afghan Civil War
- No economic assistance
- Let Pakistan and Saudi Arabia support local radicals
When was the Taliban created?
1994
When did the Taliban take control of Kabul?
1996
What lead to the degradation of the US -Taliban Relationship?
- Talibans treatment of women
- Drug trafficking
- The rise of Al Qaeda
- 9/11
How did 9/11 result in the launch of “Operation Enduring Freedom”?
1) US war on terror
2) Taliban refuses to hand over Bin Laden
3) US begins its intervention in Afghanistan
Why did the US only send a few thousand troops to Afghanistan initially?
- No Soviet-like entanglement
- Anticipated an easy victory
- Thinking about a war in Iraq
What lead to an initially quick victory
- US Air Strikes
- Cooperation with the Northern Alliance’s Warlords
- Retook Kabul in November of 2001
- Inexpensive war
- Only 56 American casualties
- US troops welcomed in many areas
How did the initial US operation in Afghanistan fail?
- Bin Laden escaped to Pakistan in December of 2001 (Battle of Tora Bora)
- No enough US troops
- Mullah Omar escapes to Pakistan
What policies did the US set in Afghanistan after December of 2001?
- Attempted to democratize Afghanistan (2004: The new Constitution and presidential elections)
Why did the US struggle to democratize Afghanistan?
- Ethnic rivalries
- Insecurity
- Underdevelopment
- Religious traditionalism
- Hostility to foreign interference
What are the two main arguments why the US failed to democratize Afghanistan?
1) The US and its allies did not do enough
2) The US and its allies could not succeed due to to many obstacles and ambiguities
What are examples of challenges Afghanistans society faced?
- 40% of the weapons supplied in 2004 disappeared by 2014
- 2/3 without adequate sanitation
- 50% of children were malnourished
- More than half of marriages involved girls under the age of 16
How did the Taliban gradually resurge in 2001?
- Suicide missions growing from 1 in 2002 to 136 in 2006
- Armed attacks beginning in 2005
- US/NATO Death toll rising from 60 in 2004 to 295 in 2008
What was Obamas approach to the Afghan war in 2009?
- Sent 33,000 US troops and 5,500 NATO troops
- Goals: Reverse the Talibans momentum, Kill al-Qaeda terrorist, Train the Afghan Army and Police, and Reduce Kabuls corruption
What was the results of the US strategy in 2009?
- The surge ended dafter 18 months
- The strategy was flawed
What happened after the US killed Bin Laden in May of 2011?
- Al Qaeda survived
- Rise in the number of Taliban attacks (high-profile attacks on US embassy and NATO headquarters)
- Emergence of ISIS-Khorasan
Why did the Afghan support for the US begin to decline?
- Military occupation/blunders
- Growing civilian casualties
- Association with Kabuls corrupt regime
What was Trumps approach to the Afghan war in 2017?
- New surge of 3,900 troops (14000 US troops and 6600 Allies)
What was the US-Taliban Peace deal in February of 2020?
- The US withdraws in 14 months
- Intra-Afghan negotiations would follow
-Taliban would “prevent any group or individual, including al-Qa‘ida, from using the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the US”
What was Bidens approach to the Afghan war in 2021?
- Announced the withdraw of the US in 2021 (recognized the war could not be won)
- The Afghan regime unravels (Taliban entered Kabul)
What were critiques against Bidens withdraw?
- Rushed process
- No consultations with allies
- Thousands of Afghans who worked for the US were left behind
What are the current challenges and tragedies in Afghanistan?
- 97% of Afghans suffering from poverty
- 22.8M facing acute malnutrition
- No school for most girls
- Women barred from returning to their jobs
