There was a well-researched and formulated plan for withdrawal from Afghanistan drawn up by the Trump Administration, and it was available to the incoming Harris/Biden team, who blithely ripped it up without even reading it (”Not Invented Here”, you understand). Their own plan was pretty much “bug out”, devil take the hindmost.
And the devil did his part, sandbagging the unfortunates who did not crash the line and get on the last transport out. This was a worse rout than the departure from Viet Nam.
Billions in war material, a very strategic air base, and countless personnel were left to the tender mercies of the Taliban, not any kind of a legitimate government.
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Well said, alloysteel.
Once a week I attend a city-sponsored Japanese language school (north of Tokyo). The vast majority of students are young adults from all over Asia. Typically the student either works in Japan on a Visa or their spouse is a Japanese citizen.
An entrepreneur from Afghanistan came to class a couple times and he spoke fairly good English.
His one-man-show is to find used cars in Japan and sell them to other countries, particularly Russia where they recognize the quality of used cars in Nippon.
He told me the worst thing about the Taliban rule is there's no state/national law, per se. If a local official doesn't like something about you or your past, you could easily be sent to jail on his whim.
Very dangerous place for him, especially since close relatives were formally friendly to the Russians when they ruled Afghanistan.
Great fear about ever going back to that outlaw-run country.