Can Peace be Made with the Taliban?
A strange cocktail of foreign policy that looks to end America’s longest war.
The prospect of America holding peace talks with what the Afghan people see as Taliban butchers presents a strange cocktail of foreign policy that looks to end America’s longest war. The following article is part of a four-part series featuring conversations with military veterans who served in Afghanistan to explore what went wrong and what comes next.
In Part 3 of my Afghanistan series, I speak with retired Army Major Jason Criss Howk, who served with the Department of Defense as a South Asian foreign area officer and has worked on Afghanistan since 2002. Howk now works as an an instructor, public speaker, podcast host and author who focuses on Islam and the Middle East.
Qudosi: You worked for the United States government in Afghanistan beginning in 2002 at tactical, operational, and policy levels. We now have increased insurgent attacks from the Taliban, while at the same time we have some folks seeing the Taliban as freedom fighters against Western colonizers. Can you help us understand how to make sense of the Taliban as America enters peace talks with a group we’ve been fighting for nearly 20 years.
Howk: The Taliban and other insurgent, criminal, and terrorist forces are ready to fight at the tactical level and are hoping for many tactical successes to help them with their strategic narrative as a powerful liberation force as they see the world pressing them to enter peace talks.
It’s important to remember that the Taliban is not a liberation force ridding the Afghan people of oppressive foreign forces. They are an oppressive anti-Islamic organization of butchers that are murdering innocent Afghans.
Qudosi: Reports show the Taliban claim indirect talks are already underway with the U.S. with locations including Afghanistan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Informal U.S. talks with the Taliban are a very odd scenario: friendly meetings with tea and cookies served amid extremely tight security and meeting protocols. Amidst this unfolding delicate courtship between the Taliban and America, we’re also learning that the Taliban are open to keeping U.S. troops in Afghanistan. What’s the likelihood of success here with any future, formal peace talks?
Howk: The Taliban will eventually need to enter peace talks if they plan on re-entering Afghan society. Peace talks will be held with the Afghan government, but the peace talks will actually need to be approved by the Afghan people. The Afghan people would rather see the Taliban dead than back in Afghan society right now.
Every attack on innocents by the Taliban proves to the Afghan people that they are anti-Islamic and have left the straight path of Islam. If the Taliban doesn’t change its ways, they will eventually be stuck living in Pakistan and being used to fight until they die. They will never be Afghans again.
Qudosi: I’m glad you brought up the Afghan people. When we discuss Afghanistan, the voices that are often the least heard are those of the Afghan people. From your experience, how do Afghans feel about the Taliban?
Howk: The Taliban are hated by the Afghan people, even more than the Afghans hated [former President] Najibullah’s army of the 1980s. Every cowardly attack on innocent Afghan children, women, and men by Taliban butchers means 1,000 more true Afghans will resist the Taliban insurgency with all their strength.
Qudosi: How do we get ahead of the increased insurgent attacks in Afghanistan from the Taliban, ISIS and al-Qaeda? How do we make it safer for Afghans to be present and participatory in their society?
Currently, the Taliban threatens 70% of Afghanistan. They control 14 districts and move openly in 66% of other districts, with Afghans fearing for their lives every time they step out of their homes.
Howk: Afghan and NATO strategy must put more emphasis on intelligence collection to get ahead of these attacks. The U.S. and its allies must continue to be a steady, long-term partner for the Afghan government and the Afghan people in all sectors. While security continues to be the most vital sector, the world must continue to move Afghans forward economically and scholastically.
Qudosi: I’ve heard mixed accounts on the resolve of the Afghan security forces, including desertion amid deteriorating security. As of May 2018, Afghan security forces were just at about 300,000 members — a 10% drop according to reports. The question that begs to be asked is: Are the Afghan security forces invested in their own country?
Howk: The patriotism and resolve of the Afghan Security forces is deep. They will not and are not acting like their Soviet-backed communist army did in the 1980’s and 1990’s.
Qudosi: It’s interesting that you bring up that time period. Should we be looking at Afghanistan through a post-9/11 lens or should we broaden our timeline?
Howk: Most veterans have no view of history. They think Afghan issues began in 2001. As bad as last week’s attacks were, it’s nothing compared to the 1980s and ’90s.
I urge pundits, reporters and the Taliban to read the Craig Karp State Department reports assessing the Afghan-Soviet war. You will find that the Taliban are now in the position the Soviet and communist Afghan army were in. Our time period is not equivalent to the “mujahideen” fighting the brutal Soviet and communist Afghan army.
Qudosi: Pakistan also plays a complicated role, with unique Taliban factions in Pakistan — a Pakistani Taliban — who have their own strategy. We also have the U.S. bypassing Pakistan in peace talks. What’s the takeaway here when it comes to Pakistan’s involvement?
Howk: The Taliban are being used by the Pakistanis and others in a failed attempt to follow a past strategy. But the current Pakistani Taliban’s strategy is flawed. This time, the barbaric oppressive “foreign” force is the Taliban insurgency and its allies. The Afghan government security forces and their partners in the NATO-led coalition are on the side of peace and security that Afghans so deserve. If the Taliban continue to follow the flawed Pakistani strategy that was used by the mujahideen, they will continue down the road to death.