Afghan Government forces are collapsing even faster than US military leaders thought possible just a few months ago when President Joe Biden ordered a full withdrawal.
But there's little appetite at the White House, the Pentagon or among the American public for trying to stop the rout and it probably is too late to do so. Biden has made clear he has no intention of reversing the decision he made last spring, even as the outcome seems to point toward a Taliban takeover.
With most US troops now gone and the Taliban accelerating their battlefield gains, American military leaders are not pressing him to change his mind. They know that the only significant option would be for the president to restart the war he already decided to end.
The Taliban, who ruled the country from 1996 until US forces invaded after the 9/11 attacks, captured three more provincial capitals Wednesday and another on Thursday, the 10th the insurgents have taken in a weeklong sweep that has given them effective control of about two-thirds of the country. The insurgents have no air force and are outnumbered by U.S.-trained Afghan defense forces, but they have captured territory with stunning speed.
John Kirby, the chief Pentagon spokesman, said the Afghans still have time to save themselves from final defeat.
“No potential outcome has to be inevitable, including the fall of Kabul,” Kirby told reporters. “It doesn't have to be that way. It really depends on what kind of political and military leadership the Afghans can muster to turn this around.”