So democracy and freedom have lost, the terrorists and Taliban have won. Rather than doubling down with the rest of NATO to eradicate them once and for all, he decides to be a ***** and pull out before the job is done. As an American, I am genuinely embarrassed. Anyone else?
Clearly the Taliban have won, they have been the only organisation that has demonstrated itself capable of imposing any order on Afghanistan in living memory. It could be a bit rough for women with jobs over the next few years.
However I do not get where you are coming from with the "democracy and freedom" bit. You are not suggesting the current administration, elected with 923,592 votes in a country of 38 million, has any sort of democratic mandate?
BBC on the Taliban view:
The Taliban believe victory is theirs. Sitting over a cup of green tea, Haji Hekmat proclaims, "we have won the war and America has lost". The decision by US President Joe Biden to delay the withdrawal of remaining US forces to September, meaning they will remain in the country past the 1 May deadline agreed last year, has sparked a sharp reaction from the Taliban's political leadership. Nonetheless, momentum seems to be with the militants.
"We are ready for anything," says Haji Hekmat. "We are totally prepared for peace, and we are fully prepared for jihad." Sitting next to him, a military commander adds: "Jihad is an act of worship. Worship is something that, however much of it you do, you don't get tired."
Baryalai, a local military commander with a ferocious reputation, points down the road, "the government forces are just there by the main market, but they can't leave their bases. This territory belongs to the mujahideen".
It's a similar picture across much of Afghanistan: the government controls the cities and bigger towns, but the Taliban are encircling them, with a presence in large parts of the countryside.
The militants assert their authority through sporadic checkpoints along key roads. As Taliban members stop and question passing cars, Aamir Sahib Ajmal, the local head of the Taliban's intelligence service, tells us they're searching for people linked to the government.
"We will arrest them, and take them prisoner," he says. "Then we hand them over to our courts and they decide what will happen next."