In an article highly critical of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the international leaders who supported the invasion of the country in 2001, says that the return of the Taliban to power will have serious consequences for the West. And he points to Russia’s “consistency” in supporting Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria as the opposite example of “politicizing foreign policy that is atrophying US power.”
“Leaving Afghanistan and its people is tragic, dangerous and unnecessary.” begins with the fact that the former head of the British government, Labor Party and executive chairman of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.
“It was our choice in response to slogan a political jerk about ending ‘perpetual wars’, as if our commitments in 2021 could be remotely comparable to our commitments 20 years ago or ten years ago, ”says Blair, noting that“ the number of troops has been reduced to one. not a single Allied soldier has been killed in action in the past 18 months. ”
Blair, who was severely criticized for being supported and encouraged the US invasion of Iraqin 2003 compares the dangers of “radical Islam” to the dangers of “revolutionary communism” to say that the West seems to have lost “its resolve” to defend values that were previously agreed upon.
“In the past, we recognized revolutionary communism as a strategic threat that required countering both from an ideological and security point of view. This commitment lasted 70 years, ”says Blair, referring to the period between the Russian revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
“In all this time, it never occurred to us to say that we have been doing this for too long and that it is time to give up.”
Putin’s determination
By comparison, the former British prime minister cites the Russian reaction of Vladimir Putin. to the revolutions of the Arab spring, ten years ago – a historic moment that made the Kremlin “realize that its interests are at stake.”
“In particular, in Syria, he [Putin] he believed that Assad should remain in power. And while the West hesitated, and then eventually faced the worst of both worlds – the refusal to negotiate with Assad. and do nothing to incapacitate iteven when he used chemical weapons against his people, Putin used himself, ”says Blair.
“Although he acted in support of the dictatorship, and we acted to suppress the dictatorship, it was he – along with the Iranians – who achieved his goals. The same way in spite of us overthrow of the Gaddafi government in Libyait is Russia, not us, that has an impact on the future of the country. “
Blair’s harsh criticism of the way US foreign policy has been conducted in recent years forces him to leave the council on the left and right in a country where support for the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is significant from left to right – in the Republican Party, in the Democratic Party. and among voters declaring themselves independent.
“Right-wing parties in politics need to realize that isolationism in an interconnected world is self-destructive, and left-wing parties need to recognize that interventionism is sometimes necessary to defend our values.”