American “Odyssey” in Afghanistan

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the development and implementation of the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan under President Donald Trump’s Republican administration. By removing constraints, which limited U.S. action in Afghanistan under President Obama, Trump added more flexibility to American strategy in Afghanistan. Sporadic attempts to reach a compromise with the Taliban, which the U.S. made since 2010, resulted in signing the Doha Agreement in February 2020. Despite Trump’s willingness to bring the war to a close, there is lack of overwhelming consensus over strategy in Afghanistan among American politicians and pundits. Some influential segments of U.S. foreign policy and military elites advocate for a limited counterterrorism mission in Afghanistan. Regardless of fulfilling plans to minimize America’s involvement in the war, the U.S. will keep the capability to interfere in Afghanistan if the security situation in this country deteriorates further. The development of the U.S. Afghan strategy under Trump reflects continued infighting in America’s policy and expert circles between proponents of different strategies. To consolidate their influence on foreign policy debates, they use a number of axiomatic views. Unlike the advocates of the Afghanistan mission, its opponents use a wider variety of arguments, including shifting regional dynamics and dramatic changes in the international system. The infighting of Trump’s decision-making team concerning U.S. continued involvement in Afghanistan reflects a broader struggle between liberal internationalists and supporters of a more restrained U.S. foreign policy.