Lessons of the American fiasco in Afghanistan

Thousands of Afghan and American lives lost. Billions, perhaps trillions of dollars down the drain. Livelihoods destroyed forever.

As the curtain falls on the 20 years of American involvement in Afghanistan, the world is yet again forced to come to terms with another instance of American misadventure around the world.

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The chaotic scenes of desperate Afghanis clinging on to the sides of American transport planes as they readied for take-off knowing that they risked certain death in doing so all in the hope of hitching a plane ride ahead of the advancing Taliban forces who have massed around the capital of Kabul made horror watching. And the sight of Chinook helicopters hovering on the rooftops of the massive American Embassy in Kabul and the Bagram Airbase to evacuate American civilian personnel and their families completed the picture of a failed but hubristic attempt at installing Pax Americana on yet another nation that did not ask nor had any need for it.

America’s intervention in Afghanistan, we were told at the beginning, was justified on the need to root out the terrorists who it accused of masterminding the 9/11 attacks. Everything the Americans did; from removing the Taliban government, which it accused of providing sanctuary to the terrorists; to the relentless pursuit and eventual execution of Osama bin Laden, the man they accused of being the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks; and the subsequent efforts to introduce liberal democratic norms and practices to a country steeped in medieval tradition and ways, was to achieve this objective.

Well, with the return of the Taliban, who the Americans ousted 20 years ago and whom they pointed to as the reason for their intervention in Afghanistan, many would be moved to think that the Americans have failed in their mission.

But is it really the case? Let us look closely at the ‘’unknown unknowns’’ of this American Afghan debacle.

From the humanitarian angle of the thousands of lives lost and livelihoods destroyed, perhaps we can say so. And we can even say that with the return of the Taliban, which they removed from power and spent the better part of their 20 years in Afghanistan, they may have failed.

But the reality is that on another angle, the one that does not get known to the public, the American Afghan intervention was a huge boon for the American military-industrial complex. This is the nexus of scores of defence industries and its phalanx of retired military officers retained on their board and management and also as consultants and advisers.

A huge chunk of the billions of dollars spent in Afghanistan went to Defence contractors like; the Georgia based Lockheed Martin, which supplied the Jet fighters, the Chinook helicopters and transport planes; Northrop Grumman, which supplied some of the avionics and guidance systems on the planes, the tanks, APCs and other platforms; Boeing, which also built the air borne reconnaissance and surveillance planes; Raytheon of Massachusetts, which supplied the missiles hoisted on planes and anti-air defence shields; and many more American private companies who provided the use of so-called contractors who in reality are nothing but mercenaries.

From the beginning of the Second World War, the American military-industrial establishment has been the instigator of American foreign military interventions. Having grown from the huge demands of the Second World War for all kinds of military and related supplies, the American military establishment has over the years become a behemoth controlling American foreign policy and military interventions.

The American military-industrial establishment has become a huge ogre which constantly requires foreign military engagements for the profits to continue to roll in.

Closely allied to the American military establishment is the massive research and development opportunities that come with studying and thus perfecting the development and deployment of the various platforms produced, which helps to give America the edge in military capabilities.

It is largely for the benefits of the military establishment that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has been retained to this day even after it has outlived its usefulness. All member countries of NATO are compelled to set aside a percentage of their defence budget to financing NATO. A chunk of the total NATO budget goes to purchasing American military equipment, paying for the American bases and military consultants and advisers.

It is also for the benefit of the American military-industrial establishment that America retains about 800 military bases around the world. The bases have to be built, supplied and equipped with military hardware by military contractors.

Since the end of the Second World War, America has been directly and indirectly involved in hundreds of wars mostly by deceit and rather needlessly. But as long as the American military establishment needs sustenance with huge military contracts so long America will look for any pretext to be constantly involved in foreign military interventions.

It is this reason that guides American foreign policy in the main. It is also the reason why the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was established in 1947 to enforce American foreign policy. With the huge global involvement of America during the Second World War and the need to coordinate American interests, the CIA was set up to instigate events that will lead to American interventions in ways favourable for the advancement of American hegemony around the world.

This is the setup that creates and provides the opportunity for the American military-industrial establishment to continue to rake in huge profits after profits.

Who pays for all this?

The simple answer is you and me. We pay for this through the vast capital flight that flows from our countries into the American-dominated global economic system. We pay for this through the seignorage of the American Dollar in which every currency in the world is made to artificially ‘’bow’’ to. America simply dips its hands into this vast, bottomless pool of other people’s money to finance its hegemonic interests and pass the costs to the world. This way, the world has been paying for American misadventures around the world. Every time America intervenes in one area or another in the world, we pay for it. And because no country or group of countries is strong enough to challenge this, American policymakers feel secure in the knowledge that they can do as they wish around the world and get away with it.

For us in Nigeria, the lesson is that in a world where predators are on the constant prowl looking for an opportunity to pounce, we should be extremely wary (shine our eyes and ears) about how we encourage and constantly resort to calling for foreign intervention in our internal affairs. No country can solve our problems for us. And if we invite them to do so, they will do it on their own terms and we will all suffer for it big time.

As happened in Afghanistan when they are through shafting us for what we are worth, we will end up struggling for plane rides packed like sardines-molue like out of the hell that we helped created by our own hands.

It happened not only in Afghanistan at this instant but also in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Libya, Syria and other places where America intervened. It should and must not happen to us. Tufiakwa!