The United States President Donald Trump’s recent call to withdraw just over half of the 4,500 United States troops in Afghanistan has been condemned as an act that “would hurt our allies and delight, delight, the people who wish us harm” by members of his own party and key military leaders. The November 17 announcement of troop reduction is part of a ceasefire agreement with the Taliban, but may not help deliver a lasting peace to the Afghan people.
The Taliban are a fanatical minority who seek to replace Afghanistan’s fledgling democracy with harsh Islamic law. They also have close ties to al-Qaida, offering refuge to other terrorist groups and supporting terrorist campaigns against neighbouring Uzbekistan and Pakistan.
The country’s long-suffering people will be most affected by the pullout. Many of them rely on the US military to keep the Taliban from moving out of the countryside – much of which they control, especially in the southeast – to take…