For a war now in its 17th year, the United States has precious little to show, despite having lost over 2,400 of its own soldiers and expending an estimated trillion dollars.Īfter 9/11, “the United States and its allies went barreling into Afghanistan,” Coll writes, “because they felt that they had no alternative.” Once in, they were soon plunged into a quagmire. And corruption continues to plague an Afghan government of doubtful legitimacy and effectiveness. Opium production has reached an all-time high. Over the past year, the Taliban have increased the amount of territory they control. Yet mission accomplishment remains nowhere in sight. “We’re here to stay,” he told a gathering of troops, “until freedom wins.” In December 2017, during a brief visit to Kabul - unannounced because of security concerns - Vice President Mike Pence affirmed that commitment. Bush declared it America’s purpose “to lift up the people of Afghanistan.” Bush vowed that American forces would stay until they finished the job. In December 2001, with Operation Enduring Freedom barely underway, President George W. That story is a dispiriting one, abounding in promises from on high, short on concrete results. “Directorate S” - the title refers to the arm of Pakistani intelligence that covertly supports the Afghan Taliban - is a sequel to that volume, carrying the story up to 2016. In 2004, “Ghost Wars,” his account of conflict in Afghanistan from the 1979 Soviet invasion to the eve of 9/11, earned him a Pulitzer Prize, his second. The dean of Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism, Coll is a seasoned and accomplished reporter. Just don’t expect anything to change as a consequence. The topic is important, the treatment compelling, the conclusions persuasive. Steve Coll has written a book of surpassing excellence that is almost certainly destined for irrelevance. and America’s Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan By Steve Coll Illustrated.

Ghost Wars by Steve Coll