Afghan President Ashraf Ghani attempted to ingratiate himself to US officials on Wednesday by flipping the “Graveyard of Empires” metaphor—a succinct reminder that global powers have often found themselves bogged down in military campaigns in Afghanistan to the point of collapse.
During a Wednesday address to a joint session of Congress, Ghani said that the US is on the domestic side of the foreign invasion dynamic; that the government in Kabul—installed by Washington in 2001—and American troops are in a joint grassroots fight against outside forces.
“Afghanistan will be the graveyard of al Al-Qaeda and their foreign terrorist associates,” he said. “Never again will our country be hosts to terrorists,” he said referring to the 9/11 attacks.
Ghani also stated, bizarrely, that Afghanistan is the ideal country for the US to partner with in a fight against fundamentalists because of its reputation for sapping the strength of imperial entities.
“Properly supported, Afghanistan is uniquely positioned to block the spread of extremism. We have none of the historical inferiority complexes that fuel resentment again Western domination. After all, we defeated most of the empires,” he said to laughter and applause from legislators and cabinet members.
Ghani did call for reconciliation with the Taliban, and described an elusive lasting settlement as an “elephant lurking in the back of the room.”
“The Taliban need to choose not to be Al-Qaeda. If they choose to be Afghan, they will be welcomed to be part of the fabric of our society,” he said to awkward applause.
But he also praised US military assistance, which he described as enabling as enabling Kabul to negotiate with the Taliban “from a position of strength.”
Ghani was effusive in his praise for the US military throughout his speech and listed the ways he believes Afghanistan has improved since 2001.
“The people of Afghanistan recognize the bravery of your soldiers and the tremendous sacrifices that Americans have made to keep Afghanistan free,” he said.
In part, due to Ghani’s ascension last year, President Obama decided in the past few days to delay the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. Although it wasn’t clear last week if he would even publicly announce the change, Obama did mention it at a press conference on Monday with Ghani. The incumbent is much more welcoming of American military activities than his longtime predecessor, Hamid Karzai.
Despite the improved relations between Kabul and Washington, some American officials, have warned about the US remaining too close to Afghanistan. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John Sopko, for example, said the money and resources that the US has already committed to the country will make it a “client state for years to come.” Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) raised Sopko’s remarks when pressing Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter on US activities in Southwest Asia.
“We will continue to put money down the rat hole and never say that its time to stop putting money down the rat hole,” Jones said.
There are also questions about the efficacy of the US train and support mission. Afghan security forces suffered over 9,000 fatal casualties in 2013 and 2014—a rate of loss described as “unsustainable” by a leading US commander. Information released earlier this month by the Pentagon—long-public data that the military had monetarily classified over concerns about Afghan readiness amid questions about the US role in Afghanistan—also showed that 40,000 members of the Afghan National Army dropped out of the force between October 2013 and September 2014.
Despite claims made by President Obama and President Ghani about the US combat role in Afghanistan winding up at the end of last year, it was reported last month that US troops were still leading fighting “in the shadows now,” and “playing direct combat roles.”
Five years ago this June, the ongoing fight in Afghanistan became the longest war in US history.
Most famously to date, the British Empire, Alexander the Great, and the Soviet Union all have suffered catastrophic military losses on Afghan soil.
