Military Advice and the “Forever War” in Afghanistan

When the United States invaded Afghanistan after the attacks on September 11, 2001, and then overthrew the Taliban regime, senior military officers were not predicting that the United States would be militarily involved 18 years later. Yet, after expending nearly $800 billion and suffering 2,400 killed, the United States is still there, having achieved at best a stalemate. The CSIS report seeks to understand how this happened. Our panel discussion will consider the nature of military advice in Afghanistan, its strengths and weaknesses, and what we have learned for future conflicts.