Given the quick-moving developments on the ground in Afghanistan, we are releasing a special edition of our weekly newsletter to provide our readers with the latest analysis from Hudson’s experts.

In Afghanistan, the Tragic Toll of Washington Delusion

Taliban fighters on a street in Afghanistan's Laghman province on August 15, 2021. (Getty Images)

The world is witnessing in Afghanistan a vivid and painful display of what happens when leaders in Washington delude themselves about the nature of America's enemies and the feasibility of ending wars by simply going home, writes H.R. McMaster in The Wall Street Journal. Taking stock of this catastrophe and determining what might be done to limit the damage caused by the abrupt withdrawal of U.S. troops will require a rejection of Washington's fantasy and an acknowledgment of Afghanistan's reality. 

What Happens in Kabul Will Not Stay in Kabul

Afghans wait in long lines at a passport office in a desperate effort to leave the country on August 14, 2021 in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Getty Images)

Whether President Biden acknowledges it or not, the debacle in Afghanistan has undermined U.S. prestige as a superpower, writes Hudson Institute’s Husain Haqqani in The Hill. What is happening in Kabul will not stay in Kabul. Radical Islamists, armed with the powerful narrative of driving out two superpowers through jihad, will challenge the American-led order across much of the Muslim world. The U.S. must now focus on the second-order consequences of its disastrous endgame.

The Taliban Takeover Will Increase the Terrorist Threat

A Pakistani soldier stands guard as stranded Afghan nationals return to Afghanistan at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossing point in Chaman on August 15, 2021 (Getty Images)

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan will "permit an ecosystem of terrorism" to develop that will pose a clear danger to America's national security, Rebeccah Heinrichs tells Fox Business. "This is a humiliation, and the problem is only going to spill over."

The Consequences of a Taliban Victory

Afghan soldiers in a Mobile Strike Force Vehicle in Shindand Military Base, Herat province (Getty Images)

"The Taliban remains close to Al Qaeda, and it is only a matter of time before they threaten the U.S. once again." Husain Haqqani discusses the long-term consequences of American withdrawal from Afghanistan in an interview with Christiane Amanpour on CNN.

Weak Leadership Always Undermines American Security

Taliban fighters sit on a vehicle in Jalalabad province on August 15, 2021 (Getty Images)

In an interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, Mike Pompeo weighs in on the disastrous American withdrawal from Afghanistan and calls on President Biden to "make sure that we protect and defend American security."

BEFORE YOU GO...

Pakistan’s security establishment is cheering on the Taliban’s military gains in Afghanistan, writes Husain Haqqani in Foreign Affairs. Pakistan has long veiled its ambitions in Afghanistan to maintain relations with Washington, but that balancing act will prove impossible if and when a reconstituted Islamic emirate is established in Kabul. This would not be the vindication that Pakistan’s military is expecting, Haqqani argues. The Taliban are less likely to defer to Pakistan in their moment of triumph, and the Americans are not likely to reconcile with the group over the long-term.