Commentaries, Opinions, And Analysis On The Impending Withdrawal From Afghanistan

Soldiers work on vehicles that will be re-deployed to Britain, at Camp Bastion, outside Lashkar Gah, in Helmand Province, Afghanistan on December 20, 2012. (Stefan Wermuth/Reuters)

Learning From the Soviets: How to Withdraw From Afghanistan -- Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, The Atlantic

The New York Times bungles history in predicting the upcoming departure of U.S. troops.

One unique feature of Afghanistan's history, in addition to the ubiquity of foreign invasions that stretch back for 2600 years, is the manner in which one would-be conqueror after another found its position compromised due to its failure to understand this history. "The British would repeat the blunders of the Romans," writes Peter Tomsen in The Wars of Afghanistan, arguing that their nineteenth century invasions overlooked lessons that could be gleaned from the defeat the Romans suffered at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 B.C. And, he added, "the Soviets would make the same mistakes a century later."

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Analysis On The Impending Withdrawal From Afghanistan

How to Waste a Decade in Afghanistan -- Frederick and Kimberly Kagan, Wall Street Journal
West must rethink its Afghanistan exit -- Kurt Volker and George Robertson, Financial Times
White House Considering the “Zero Option” for Afghanistan? -- Max Boot, Commentary
Saving Afghanistan -- Abdullah Abdullah, Foreign Policy
Karzai meets Obama: How will they shape a post-2014 Afghanistan? -- Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor
Choices on Afghanistan -- New York Times editorial
As Karzai Visits U.S., What Are The Prospects For Afghan Peace? -- Sean Carberry, NPR
The Way Forward in Afghanistan Looks Perilous -- Bing West, NRO
Commentary: Withdrawal must not allow drift into anarchy -- Robert Fox, Evening Standard
The open question of Afghanistan -- Walter Pincus, Washington Post
Strategy, Not Politics, Should Dictate Troop Levels -- Max Boot, Commentary
Assessing the White House’s Options for Post-2014 Afghanistan -- Max Boot, Commentary
A 'Zero Option' for Afghanistan: Yes, President Karzai, we might pull out completely. -- David W. Barno, Foreign Policy