RASC News Agency: A former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense testified to the Commission on America’s War in Afghanistan that while Pakistan cooperated in the fight against al-Qaeda, it played a double game when it came to dismantling Taliban sanctuaries. Michael George Vickers described Pakistan as both an overt ally and a covert adversary of the United States. Vickers stated that Pakistan was serious about cooperating against al-Qaeda but did not take steps to combat the Taliban. He provided this testimony on Friday, July 20, during the commission’s inaugural session.
He testified that the U.S., with the cooperation of the Pakistani military, succeeded in defeating al-Qaeda and eliminating its safe havens in Pakistan but ultimately lost the war to the Taliban. According to Vickers, the primary reason for this loss was the U.S.’s failure to destroy Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan, as Pakistan did not permit their eradication. Vickers elaborated: “The leadership of the Pakistani military supported us in eliminating al-Qaeda, but they viewed the Taliban as a strategic tool that could establish a government in Afghanistan favorable to Pakistan’s interests.”
He added: “The Pakistanis played a double game in the fight against the Taliban; they were part ally and part hidden enemy.” He emphasized that Pakistan made no significant moves to combat the Taliban. The former U.S. intelligence official also criticized America’s counterterrorism strategy in Afghanistan as flawed. He noted that the U.S. shifted its focus from counterterrorism to nation-building in Afghanistan, which diverted attention from the primary objective.
Vickers admitted that the U.S. acted too late to create a reliable and effective security force in Afghanistan and squandered significant resources in building what he described as an “ineffective” security apparatus. He also mentioned that the U.S. delayed transferring security responsibilities to the Afghanistan government. He further criticized Presidents Trump and Biden for choosing defeat over continued support for the Afghanistan government. “The real reason we lost in Afghanistan is that two U.S. presidents decided to choose defeat over continued support for the Afghanistan government and indirect combat with the Taliban,” Vickers asserted.
He argued that the war in Afghanistan should have continued with support for the Afghanistan government, stating: “In the short term, we couldn’t have won with 150,000 troops, but with a few thousand military advisors, support for the Afghanistan government, and continued airstrikes to prevent the Taliban from capturing cities, we wouldn’t have been defeated. Instead, we chose our defeat.” Vickers made these remarks at the Commission on America’s War in Afghanistan’s inaugural session, held at the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department in Washington.
The session included diplomats, former U.S. and Afghanistani officials, and researchers, including Nader Nadery and Halima Kazem from Afghanistan. The commission, comprising 16 members, emphasized that it would engage with all those involved in the Afghanistan war to provide a comprehensive perspective for the future of U.S. policies. Established by the U.S. Congress in December 2021, the commission’s mandate is to conduct a thorough review of America’s key decisions in military, intelligence, foreign aid, and diplomatic involvement in Afghanistan from June 2001 to August 2021.
