Did we “win” in Afghanistan or Iraq? How about Vietnam or Korea? Panama or Mogadishu? Why does the US military have a presence in nearly every country on the planet?
Winning in Iraq or Afghanistan or Vietnam or elsewhere, is not the final goal.
The final goal is to stop or inhibit bigger and more damaging wars from being instigated or started or waged.
We have not seen a world war for more than 80 years, and it’s not because of the UN. The U.S. has become the policeman of the world, and as such, a presence of that policeman is required in just about every part of the world. If not for that policeman, the many parts of the world would be ruled by tyrants who could have easily taken over their neighbors. China would have easily taken over many countries in Asia and Russia/USSR could easily have become the ruler of most of Europe, and Iran could have become the ruler of the Islamic State Of The Middle East, with Israel having been erased from existence.
We don’t need to win wars, and winning is not about raising flags over lands or territories or conquered countries.