Florian Weigand uses the case of Afghanistan to posit a theory of legitimacy and authority under armed conflicts, but fails to consider the role of parallel institutions.
The Taliban have been in power in Afghanistan for a year and Iran is still attempting to ascertain if they can work with the Taliban in any capacity.
Despite promises, the Taliban reversed course on full access to education. As a result, Afghanistan remains isolated from international recognition and Afghans continue to suffer.
With the Taliban seeking humanitarian aid, the international community should tie any support to how the regime treats its citizens.
Part of Tehran’s outreach to the Taliban has been to blame Afghanistan’s chaos on the US. But, past events suggest that the Taliban is no friend of Iran.
Afghanistan is not the graveyard of empires, it is the graveyard of strategy.
We still do not know exactly how the Taliban will rule Afghanistan. Yet, experience suggests that many Afghans have much to fear – especially women and the Shi’a.
Astonishment at the fall of Kabul reflect habits of imperial abstraction, moral displacement and hubris that are prefigured in Thucydides writings about ancient Greece.
Whether or not America’s allies are willing to go along with Biden and bet on America’s enlightened return is the critical question in the wake of Afghanistan’s fall.
Malejacq’s book presents a lively and detailed narrative of four significant ‘warlords’ and how they demonstrate the failings of external statebuilding in Afghanistan.
Before you download your free e-book, please consider donating to support open access publishing.
E-IR is an independent non-profit publisher run by an all volunteer team. Your donations allow us to invest in new open access titles and pay our bandwidth bills to ensure we keep our existing titles free to view. Any amount, in any currency, is appreciated. Many thanks!
Donations are voluntary and not required to download the e-book - your link to download is below.
