The former head of the British military has condemned what he said were a series of failures that led to the capture of Afghanistan by the Taliban a year ago.
One year on from the first chaotic morning of Taliban rule, when people flocked to Kabul International Airport in desperate attempts to escape, Gen Sir Nick Carter said there had been too little planning for what might unfold when western troops left Afghanistan.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Tuesday that the events of last summer were “the symptom of a much wider malaise” that had built up over the 20-year campaign by the American-led coalition in Afghanistan.
“Ultimately, I think it was a series of failures,” he said.
“It was a failure of politics. It was a failure to understand the local political circumstances over a period of 20 years.
"It was a failure to understand that the government that we constructed wasn't sustainable. It was a failure to understand that, from that, the Afghan security forces weren't sustainable.
"Above all, it was a failure of political will.”
The general, who acted as a mediator during talks on Afghanistan last year, said the deal negotiated between the US and the Taliban in 2020 had put more focus on arranging an American exit than on keeping the militants in check.
“I think there was too much assumption that the best case would happen rather than the worst case,” he said.
Taliban fighters celebrate a year in power – in pictures
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Taliban fighters celebrate the first anniversary of their return to power in Afghanistan, in front of the former US embassy in Kabul. AP -
A girl cries on the pavement as men ride by on a motorbike, during celebrations in Kabul marking the first anniversary of Taliban's return to power. Getty -
Taliban fighters hold weapons as they ride on a humvee in Kabul as during celebrations marking a year since their return to power in Afghanistan. AFP -
On August 15, 2021, the Taliban took control of Kabul after an 11-day blitz through Afghanistan. AP -
Afghan boys hold weapons as they join the celebrations. AP -
A Taliban fighter mans his weapon during the mass gathering in Kabul. AP -
Taliban fighters drive in procession through the streets of the Afghan capital. Reuters -
There were also celebrations in Kandahar, the extremists' seat of power. EPA -
Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi gives a speech at an event in Kabul marking the first anniversary of the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan. AFP -
Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi at the podium at an event in Kabul marking the first anniversary of the Taliban's return to power. AFP -
Acting Defence Minister Mohammad Yaqoob speaks at a gathering in Kabul to mark the first anniversary of the Taliban's return to power. AFP -
Taliban leaders attended an anniversary ceremony in Kabul. Reuters -
Outside the US embassy, fighters chanted victory slogans. AFP -
The fighters' show of force. AP -
Taliban fighters hold rifles while chanting victory slogans at Ahmad Shah Massoud Square near the US embassy. AFP -
Taliban fighters ride in a convoy near the US embassy in Kabul. AFP -
A year ago, the country's western-backed government fled and the Afghan military crumbled in the face of the Taliban advance. AP -
The chaotic withdrawal of foreign forces continued until August 31, as tens of thousands of Afghans and foreigners clamoured to board flights out of the country. AP -
The Taliban authorities have so far not announced any official celebrations to mark the anniversary, but state television said it would air special programmes. AP -
For ordinary Afghans, especially women, the return of the Taliban has increased hardships. Aid agencies say that half the country's 38 million people face extreme poverty. AFP -
Initially, the Taliban promised a softer version of their harsh interpretation of Islamist rule that characterised their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001. But many restrictions have been imposed on women. AFP -
Tens of thousands of girls have been shut out of secondary schools, while women have been barred from returning to many government jobs. AFP
US President Joe Biden said his hands were tied by the deal agreed under his predecessor, Donald Trump, meaning the choice was either to leave Afghanistan or face renewed attacks by the Taliban.
But Mr Biden was heavily criticised after the Afghan government and military collapsed before the US had even finished withdrawing its troops.
Britain and other allies said they had little choice but to follow Mr Biden's lead because there was no plausible prospect of them maintaining a military presence in Afghanistan without American firepower.
Gen Carter said the international community should engage with the Taliban to prevent it becoming a “pariah state” that might once again harbour terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda.
He said Taliban leaders, especially those he described as having “a more modernist view on life”, should be persuaded of the merits of engaging with the wider world.
But Gen Carter said any possible relationship had been undermined by the discovery and killing of Al Qaeda chief Ayman Al Zawahiri in Kabul at the end of last month, calling into question Taliban assurances about keeping terrorists at bay.
Former prime minister Gordon Brown urged the Taliban on Tuesday to listen to community leaders and other Muslim countries in order to find a way to educate girls in line with Taliban religious beliefs.
Mr Brown and fellow UN education envoy Yasmine Sherif wrote in a joint article for The Times that the current regime was "condemning Afghanistan to a future as an uneducated pariah state".
"All other Muslim nations recognise knowledge is at the core of Islam, except in Afghanistan, a country that having endured 40 years of conflict and destruction, urgently needs to rebuild," they said.
Another senior figure in the British military, former army chief Lord Richard Dannatt, said on Monday that Britain should increase aid to rescue Afghanistan from a "terrible condition" a year after the Taliban took power.
A UN special representative said the humanitarian situation could best be described as a "pure catastrophe", while the Norwegian Refugee Council spoke of displaced people being concentrated around major cities.
The council's secretary general Jan Egeland told Sky News that the Taliban had gone back on promises made last year to uphold human rights and allow girls to to to school.
"If western diplomats now are only interested in Ukraine and a few other places, and being very nationalistic in their attitude, then we have failed" the women of Afghanistan, he said.
