The mission continues

Was America’s nearly two-decade involvement in Afghanistan worth it? As a former soldier, was it worth nearly five years of my life and deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan?

I am proud of the men and women who answered our nation’s call in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. They volunteered to do a job that most Americans can’t (physically, mentally or morally) or won’t do — especially during a time of war. Post-9/11 veterans should not confuse our honorable service and sacrifices with the outcomes of the politics and policies of our elected leaders.

However, as a citizen and taxpayer, I’m not so sure if Afghanistan was worth it. In the end, what we got — for billions in dollars; lost lives and limbs — is not what we wanted. We did kill Osama bin Laden in May 2011, largely dismantled his terror network al-Qaeda, and prevented terrorist attacks on American soil. Nonetheless, the resurgence of the Taliban, the rapid failure of the U.S.-supported Afghanistan government and military, the abandonment of Afghan allies, and the chaotic August 2021 pullout, eclipses those gains of a decade ago.

Unfortunately, most Americans forget that Afghanistan is just one front of the ongoing Global War on Terror. For example, our Connecticut Army National Guard 1-102nd Infantry Regiment (Mountain) is currently deployed as Task Force Iron Gray as an element of the Combined Joint Task Force — Horn of Africa. Our Connecticut citizen-soldiers are countering violent extremist organizations not in Afghanistan this time, but in Somalia and East Africa including Kenya, Niger and Djibouti.

So while it is right and appropriate to ask if Afghanistan was worth it, we should do so in the context the war is ongoing, our armed forces are still deployed and the mission continues.

Charles M. Pickett New Haven