Perspective on Afghanistan, With Richard N. Haass

In this special episode, CFR President Richard N. Haass examines the war in Afghanistan and the lessons to be learned in its wake.

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Host
  • Gabrielle Sierra
    Director, Podcasting
Credits

Asher Ross - Supervising Producer

Markus Zakaria - Audio Producer and Sound Designer

Rafaela Siewert - Associate Podcast Producer

Episode Guests
  • Richard Haass
    President Emeritus, Council on Foreign Relations

Show Notes

The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the Taliban’s swift takeover of the country, has prompted a moment of national debate about the war’s cost and legacy. Many are asking what went wrong and what the conflict accomplished. 


For insight, Why It Matters turned to CFR President Richard N. Haass, who has spent four decades studying and advising on Afghanistan. As head of policy planning for the State Department under U.S. President George W. Bush, and later as U.S. coordinator for the future of Afghanistan, Haass was in the room when many of the earliest and most important decisions about the war were shaped. In this episode, he offers his critique of how the war unfolded and raises potential lessons the United States should consider as it turns its eyes to future challenges.

 

Dig Deeper 

 

 

From Richard N. Haass

 

America’s Withdrawal of Choice,” CFR 


 

From CFR

 

How the Afghan Army Collapsed Under the Taliban’s Pressure,” Max Boot

 

The U.S. War in Afghanistan,” Zachary Laub and Lindsay Maizland

 

We All Lost Afghanistan,” P. Michael McKinley, Foreign Affairs

 

The Taliban in Afghanistan,” Lindsay Maizland

 

Biden Was Right,” Charles A. Kupchan

 

“Global Conflict Tracker: War in Afghanistan,” Center for Preventive Action

 

The Legacy of the U.S. War in Afghanistan in Nine Graphics,” Lindsay Maizland 


 

Read More

 

After Taliban triumph, Biden faces even greater test in preventing extremist resurgence in Afghanistan,” Washington Post

 

Fear Spreads in Kabul as Taliban Take Charge,” New York Times

 

Around the halls: The Taliban retakes Afghanistan,” Brookings Institution

 

Live Updates: Taliban Consolidate Control in Afghanistan,” Wall Street Journal    

 

Why Biden was so set on withdrawing from Afghanistan,” Vox  

 

Can America Still Help Afghanistan? 8 Former Officials on What’s Next.,” Politico  


 

Watch and Listen

 

President Biden Remarks on Afghanistan,” C-SPAN

 

What Went So Wrong In Afghanistan?,” NPR 

 

‘The way the withdrawal has been handled has been an absolute catastrophe’—Afghanistan falls,” Economist 


The Fall of Afghanistan,” New York Times

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