Comment: Was Joe Biden right to leave Afghanistan?

The rapid collapse of Afghanistan’s military and governing institutions largely substantiates US President Joe Biden’s scepticism that US-led efforts would ever have enabled the government to stand on its own feet. Even two decades of steady support failed to create Afghan institutions capable of holding their own

President Joe Biden is right to stand by his decision to end the military mission in Afghanistan, because doing so is consistent with the will of the American electorate. File picture: AP /Evan Vucci

It has been excruciating to watch the Taliban roll across Afghanistan, undoing in a matter of months two decades of efforts by the Afghan people and the international community to build a decent, secure, and functioning state. The Taliban effectively wrapped up its stunning sweep of the country on Sunday, moving into Kabul and prompting President Ashraf Ghani to flee.

The Taliban’s virtually uncontested takeover over Afghanistan raises obvious questions about the wisdom of US President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw US and coalition forces from the country. Paradoxically, however, the rapidity and ease of the Taliban’s advance only reaffirms that Biden made the right decision – and that he should not reverse course.