Former US secretary of defence Bob Gates said on Thursday that the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban was the result of major miscalculations by Washington, including overestimating Afghan security forces and engaging in nation-building.
Speaking at the Aspen Institute, Mr Gates traced America’s mistakes through its 20-year war, starting with the period immediately following the 2001 invasion.
“Hubris came into the picture subsequent to the ouster of the Taliban,” explained Mr Gates, who managed the war as secretary of defence under two administrations from 2006-2011.
He said it was a “mistake” for the US to believe it could “remake other countries and frankly, do so at the point of a gun".
Another error, he argued, was in trying to build “an Afghan military essentially modelled on our own”.
Mr Gates claimed that a much leaner and lighter force that did not require air support and sophisticated logistical backing from Washington would have been more effective in stopping the Taliban advance.
Because of these mistakes, Mr Gates, who was also a former director of the CIA, did not appear surprised by the collapse of Afghan forces as the US withdrew from Afghanistan.
“They saw no hope because the support structure was lost,” he said. “The rug was pulled out from under them.”
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives to board an aircraft from Joint Base Andrews, Maryland for travel to Doha, Qatar and Ramstein, Germany. AP -
A satellite image shows grounded aircraft at the Mazar-i-Sharif airport in northern Afghanistan. Maxar Technologies via AFP -
The Mazar-i-Sharif airport in northern Afghanistan. Maxar Technologies via AFP -
Schoolgirls on their way home in Kabul. EPA -
People sell petrol on a roadside in Kabul. EPA -
Members of Jiye Sindh Mahaz party protest against plans to accept Afghan refugees in Karachi, Pakistan. Pakistan has shut its doors to Afghan refugees following the Taliban's takeover of the country. About 1. 4 million Afghan refugees are living in Pakistan legally, while around another million are undocumented. EPA -
Afghan filmmaker Shahrbanoo Sadat speaks in Paris, France, before attending a gathering held to show solidarity with the women of Afghanistan. AP -
Protesters are reflected in the sunglasses worn by a demonstrator during a rally in support of Afghanistan's people, at the Place de la Republique, in Paris. AFP -
A man holds the Afghan national flag as he takes part in a rally in support of Afghanistan's people, at the Place de la Republique, in Paris. AFP -
An Afghan man rides a bicycle past a barrier wall in Kabul. AFP -
A member of the Taliban forces stands guard at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
Passengers disembark on arrival from Kandahar at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
A general view of the city of Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
A suspected ISIS member sits blindfolded in a Taliban Special Forces car in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
An entrance of the Maintenance Group Command at the military airfield in Kabul. Reuters -
Damaged Afghan military aircraft are parked in a hangar after the Taliban's takeover of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. AP -
An Afghan military helicopter at the airport in Kabul. AP -
A Taliban fighter rests while on duty at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. AP -
A burqa-clad woman sells face masks to commuters at a traffic intersection in Kabul. AFP -
Passengers board an Ariana Afghan Airlines aircraft for a domestic flight, at the airport in Kandahar. Afghanistan's major airports reopened for domestic flights on September 4. EPA -
Foreign currency traders carry out their tasks after the money market and other financial services providers reopened for business in Kabul. AFP -
Foreign currency dealers transact in Kabul. AFP -
A Taliban fighter stands guard as people move past him at a market with shops dealing in foreign currency, in Kabul. AFP -
Workers and volunteers load a shipment of humanitarian aid to be sent to Afghanistan at Bahrain International Airport on Muharraq Island, near the capital Manama. AFP -
Official spokeswoman of the Supreme Committee for Crisis Management in Qatar, Lolwah Al Khater, and UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths visit the Park View Villas, in Doha, which is now housing Afghan refugees. AFP -
Fifa president Gianni Infantino, centre, plays football with people flown from Afghanistan at Park View Villas, Doha. Accommodation built in Qatar for the 2022 Fifa World Cup has now assumed a different role from that envisaged by the organising committee - housing Afghan refugees. AFP -
Back row, from left, Matthijs Wouter Knol, Sahraa Karimi, Sarah Mani and Mike Downey, and front row, from left, Orwa Nyrabia and Vanja Kaludjercic during the International Panel on Afghanistan and the situation of Afghan filmmakers and artists at the 78th annual Venice International Film Festival, in Italy. EPA -
US Air Force Brigadier General Gerald Donohue speaks during a media briefing at Al Udeid airbase in Doha, Qatar. Reuters -
A vendor displays guns for sale at a market in the Panjwai district of Kandahar province. AFP -
Customers wait outside a bank on a street in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
Vehicles loaded with shipping containers wait to cross into Afghanistan, at the Friendship Gate crossing point, in the border town of Chaman, Pakistan. Reuters -
People queue outside a bank to withdraw money in the Shar-e-Naw district of Kabul. AFP
But Mr Gates defended the decision to go into Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks.
“The decision to go into Afghanistan was absolutely the right decision … to rout out Al Qaeda and make sure they couldn’t attack us again.”
The problem was the expansion of US goals beyond defeating Al Qaeda, he argued.
“I felt our ambitions were too great in Afghanistan,” Mr Gates said.
The former intelligence chief defended President Joe Biden’s pivot to Asia and focus on China while also saying that it should not come at the expense of American presence in other regions, including the Middle East.
“We need to articulate that, as part of that strategy, we recognise the continuing strategic importance of the Middle East,” he said.
He also advocated continued engagement with America’s partners in the region. “We need strategic communication that says [the Middle East] is of strategic consequence to the US and we intend to stay engaged with our allies in the [region]."
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is concluding a visit to the Gulf that took him to Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.
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US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin is greeted by Vice Admiral Brad Cooper at the US naval support base in Bahrain. AFP -
Mr Austin addresses US and Bahraini personnel at the base. AFP -
Sailors at the Naval Support Activity base salute him. AFP -
Mr Austin and Vice Admiral Cooper, head of US Naval Forces Central Command and Combined Maritime Forces, tour the headquarters. AFP -
The US Secretary of Defence speaks to US and Bahraini personnel. AFP -
The Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Nawaf, receives Mr Austin in Kuwiat City. AFP -
Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al Khalid with Mr Austin. AFP -
The Secretary of Defence also meets Bahrain's King Hamad in Manama. AFP -
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Mr Austin meet Qatari ministers in Doha. Reuters -
Mr Austin with Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Khalid bin Mohamed Al Attiyah. Reuters
Asked about Iran, Mr Gates cautioned the Biden administration against re-entering the nuclear agreement signed in 2015 because of the time limitations, technological progress and Tehran's breaches of the deal.
Instead, he called for a new agreement that would primarily focus on “anytime, anyplace” inspections and rolling back recent gains.
The Biden team is seeking to return to the nuclear deal that the administration of former president Donald Trump abandoned in 2018 but has said recently that the window is narrowing for such a goal due to Iran's breaches of the agreement.
