Any surviving Vietnam veteran must be experiencing flashbacks of the hurried rooftop evacuations in Saigon as the North Vietnamese stormed that capitol city in 1975.
Having served as USAF flight surgeon flying air evac’s in South Vietnam in the mid ‘60’s, I quickly saw the parallel, the significance of failed policy and strategic planning for an orderly exit in Kabul. We failed once again to learn the lessons of history and will bear the responsibility of the aftermath not only in Kabul, but all of Afghanistan.
Following Saigon’s fall, we learned new terms- The “Boat people,” the “Killing fields.” Over two million people died subsequently in the bloodbath. What will we learn from the Kabul government’s fall? The Taliban takeover?
We’ve seen this movie before. History is repeating itself. The disastrous outcome is predictable in Kabul and throughout Afghanistan as the Taliban seek reinstitution of radical Islamic control of the country, the strict Wahhabi version. Heads will fall, literally. It will soon get very ugly over there. But, will there be repercussions here, holding politicians and military commanders responsible for poor planning of our withdrawal? Will America’s word be considered trustworthy in the future by our allies? Has nation building finally seen its last days?
Pleas by some military commanders to leave a 2500 QRF at Bagram’s strategic Central Asian AB were ignored. American close air support sustained the Afghan army for years. Why the sudden decision to abruptly withdraw the effective Taliban deterrent before we safely exited? Why not consider a longer transition period for the Quick Reaction Force to supply air cover until conditions stabilize in the Kabul sector? Now we face conditions bordering on hysteria in Kabul. Hysteria has a bad look.
I’ve published a historical narrative, RECALL and numerous blogs chronicling our Vietnam experience. Was it a noble war like WWII? Only the VN warriors were noble in my opinion. The comparison of Vietnam with Afghanistan is inescapable. The miscalculations we made are glaring. And, the aftermath that polarized our country for decades remain painful. What will be the Kabul fallout?
The take home message- Why don’t we learn from our mistakes as Santayana warned? We seem condemned to repeat them.
I invite you to read RECALL and ponder the historical facts and the questions they raise. Was Vietnam worth over 58,000 American lives? Was Afghanistan worth 5,500, including our contractors with our 2,500 troops? I understand the “Domino Theory” in Vietnam and the OBL/ AQ objective in Afghanistan, but was it worth the sacrifice in retrospect?
We had a popular military phonetic in Vietnam that aptly describes the current situation in Afghanistan- “Charlie Foxtrot”. Look it up…
I knew for years that this would be the final sad outcome for Afghanistan. To think that with a mere 2500 troop in Kabul and relatively safe from combat we could stabilize the governmemt seemed Iike the appropriate thing to do. I guess there arent .many who would agree with yet we have trooos all over the globe who in Japan and Germany’s case have been there now for three quarters of a century and there”s call to pull them out. Afghanistan will revert to what it wasvore 2001–a haven for terrorists to hone their murderous skill. Joe Biden is a fool plain and simple and doubt with heard the last of the Tivan kr f Afghanistan!
Charles- Thanks for sharing! I agree that a QFR of 2500 at Bagram AB would have maintained the status quo and allowed for an orderly withdrawal short term and even for a longer transition period. Close air support was effective from Bagram, the deciding factor. If you read my historical narrative, RECALL, you will see the parallel mistakes we made in Vietnam. We seem to never learn from our experiences.