BY: William Homes
PEJOURNAL – These days, there is nothing beyond the fall of the US-backed Ashraf Ghani government in Afghanistan and the re-emergence of the Taliban and its unfortunate consequences for Europe. This unexpected change has preoccupied the minds of Europeans and the political and security circles of the continent. The continent of Europe, which in 2015, following the escalation of the civil war in Syria and Iraq and the rise of ISIS in these two countries, faced a crisis of refugees and war refugees, as well as unprecedented fear of ISIS assassinations in European capitals, With the Taliban back in power, Europeans are increasingly worried about future developments.
While the United States was the sole designer, decision-maker, and proponent of the Western world strategy of invading Afghanistan and Iraq and then occupying the two countries, many European countries invested blindly, spending vast financial resources, and military and civilian forces. Willingly and unwillingly, they were dragged into the abyss of this war.
Now that all this disastrous damage adventure has been completely defeated, we Europeans have left Afghanistan with a lot of questions and problems. At the moment, all we are concerned about is rescuing and keeping safe the half and a half of Afghans who have worked with us for two decades. But will Europe, which has had a difficult time in the last two decades because of our wars in Syria, Libya and Iraq with the influx of refugees and waves of terror, learn from the experience of the defeat of the Western coalition in Iraq and Afghanistan once again? Do not turn a blind eye to US military adventures.
Not only European politicians and leaders and social circles, but every ordinary European with this 20-year negative balance in the West in the Middle East are now asking themselves that the continent of Europe in the areas of security, political stability, relations with the United States, relations with regional powers and the problem of immigration and the continuation of its crises, how should it adopt a policy from now on?
Undoubtedly, the policy of direct and indirect European military intervention in different regions in the future will not be easy. If NATO’s military strategy on missions outside the territory does not end with “endless wars”; And if NATO member states do not do their main job of creating deterrence and defending their sovereignty, they will no doubt in the future, with the exhaustion and frustration of foreign military intervention, affect the public opinion of NATO member states with many negative gains. The invasions of Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Libya, and the heavy defeats in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with the gradual return from Syria, all indicate that there is no place left in the world for the role of “global police” and the fight against state terrorism. Internationalism is no more than an excuse, because terrorist groups today have become sovereign with legitimacy.
The remarks of Europe’s top leaders over the past few decades about the need to rely on themselves and reduce their security dependence on Washington itself are a testament to this trend. The defeat in Afghanistan and the inability of Europe to withdraw its forces and agents from the country showed how incapable Europe is still of securing its security.
The Ineffective military action in Syria and Libya by the United States and Europe If not the beginning of a retreat from the devastating wars, the humiliation and threats of the United States to Europe will continue and the countries of the Green Continent until political independence in this turbulent world for decades. Will hold back. Given that we Europeans have the capacity to manage crises, at least in the area of security and the Mediterranean; Confidently, the Middle East welcomes the EU’s greater involvement in preventing the escalation of the crisis and in creating stability and peace.
With the developments in Afghanistan, Europe must, more than ever, come to the conclusion that it must be able to stabilize its immediate and close neighbors within the framework of its own interests, interests that have never been achieved in military cooperation with the United States. For us Europeans, the question is, what has really been the result of what foreign intervention has so far imposed on them, essentially foreign intervention and across borders? Given the bitter lessons learned from Iraq, Libya, Syria and Afghanistan, Europe should no longer blindly participate in such military intervention; And destabilize its security environment, especially in the Mediterranean neighborhood, in favor of oil cartels and arms dealers.
It should be added that the failure in Afghanistan has rarely had a negative strategic impact on future European geopolitical actions. Although European leaders want to cover up the depth of Allies’ distrust of the United States and the country’s distrust after the defeat in Afghanistan, this distrust is real and will influence future international trends. . The story of Afghanistan is perhaps the last test of Europe’s strategic independence. The independence of strategic action for Europe is summed up in the core axis of “action” that Europe has so far acted as a follower of the United States.
Since the security and immigration crisis of 2015, Europe has been heavily criticized by its communities and public opinion, and even by the affected countries, for the benefits and legitimacy of such damaging and failed interventions. At the moment, Europe can no longer fence itself off in the face of the accumulation of crises and instability around it and see itself as an island of prosperity and tranquility. The surrounding strategic threats will penetrate into Europe, and the Green Continent is in serious danger in this respect and is no safer than before the attacks on Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya.
In the immigration crisis of 2015, we saw how Turkey was able to levy migrants and send them to Europe, and even today, what heavy taxes it owed to the European Union, and especially to Germany. We Europeans do not forget that Turkey, following the renewed tension in relations with Europe, threatened that “if Europe ignores its obligations, we will send so many migrants and refugees to Europe again that the Europeans will be forced to sleep standing up.”
We Europeans must conclude that the mistakes of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya should never be repeated, and that there should be a thorough and comprehensive assessment of the actual domestic capacity, risks and costs of foreign intervention and its potential achievements. Balance the two factors.
Even now, European political leaders and the European Union have reached a consensus that their sphere of influence should be limited to financial and humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people and the provision of anti-corruption methods and development programs, if the Taliban is willing to accept this at all means.
It is clear that Europe now finds itself surrounded by a geopolitical rivalry between Afghanistan’s main players, including China, Russia, Iran and Pakistan. Of course, Europe can decide to become a stronger force in the Hindu Kush region by accepting the facts of the field and by its real capabilities, and that is only possible when Europe is with these key players in decision-making as well as in helping to create the environment. Integrate security, work in full coordination and avoid US adventurous policies in the form of aggressive realism against China.
Europe must understand that the United States has now become a normal power that neither wants to be isolated and introverted nor to take an international neutral position. The vital interests of the United States are now defined in full competition with China in East Asia. These interests are defined in areas such as Central Asia, off the coast of Africa, and perhaps even in the neighborhoods of Eastern Europe. On the contrary, for us Europeans, these areas have vital interests and to achieve these goals and objectives, we must work with the independence of strategic action and upgrade our economic and even military capabilities, even if they cost a lot and last for years.
It is clear that Europe is not even in the starting position of this strategy at the moment, but it must enter this path. Europe is still thinking of a comfortable old-fashioned model of interaction and obedience to the United States, and if it is still happy, it will be the result of strategic confusion, in which it will lose its independence in a growing and developing world. However, with the United States tired of endless wars, the old dealings with the United States are no more, and the Green Continent will lose its current position in the international arena, posing more dangers and threats to Europe.