Most people can remember where they were on 9/11. Far fewer have the same clear memories of the start of operations against Afghanistan.
But that date marked the beginning of the longest war in the history of the United States. Longer than Korea, Vietnam or Iraq. It also led to NATO's longest ever operation.
Most people can remember where they were on 9/11. Far fewer have the same clear memories of the start of operations in Afghanistan.
But that date marked the beginning of the longest war in the history of the United States. Longer than Korea, Vietnam or Iraq. It also led to NATO's longest ever operation.
10 years ago, there was an alternative on the table. US President Bush asked the Taliban to hand over the al-Qaeda leaders in Afghanistan who had planned and funded the 9/11 attacks. They refused. So, while the Taliban had not been the original target, they now fell foul of President Bush's 'with us or against us' approach. The Taliban effectively decided to fight this war.
For Afghanistan, this was just another war in a history studded with wars. The Afghans had already seen off the British at the height of their empire; the Soviets when they controlled large parts of Europe and Asia. Now it would be America and its allies.
But few could have predicted how unpredictable this war would be. That it would move from a security-based issue to practically helping one of the world's poorest countries become a master of its own destiny at last.
In this edition of NATO Review, we look at how Afghans assess the last 10 years of their country. We also ask experts if what has been achieved is enough. And we look at how Afghanistan is approaching 2014, when it takes the full lead for its security.
Some have alleged that Afghanistan was neglected twice in recent years. The first time was after the defeat of the Soviet forces. The second was following the invasion of Iraq. Whatever other lessons are drawn from the last 10 years, one of the clearest is that we neglect Afghanistan again at our peril.
