The American War in Afghanistan, Carter Malkasian
The American War in Afghanistan, Carter Malkasian
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The American War in Afghanistan
A History 1st Edition

Author: Carter Malkasian

Narrator: Jonathan Todd Ross

Unabridged: 27 hr 3 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 11/30/2021


Synopsis

The first authoritative history of American's longest war by one of the world's leading scholar-practitioners.

The American war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001, is now the longest armed conflict in the nation's history. It is currently winding down, and American troops are likely to leave soon ? but only after a stay of nearly two decades.

In The American War in Afghanistan, Carter Malkasian provides the first comprehensive history of the entire conflict. Malkasian is both a leading academic authority on the subject and an experienced practitioner, having spent nearly two years working in the Afghan countryside and going on to serve as the senior advisor to General Joseph Dunford, the US military commander in Afghanistan and later the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. Drawing from a deep well of local knowledge, understanding of Pashto, and review of primary source documents, Malkasian moves through the war's multiple phases: the 2001 invasion and after; the light American footprint during the 2003 Iraq invasion; the resurgence of the Taliban in 2006, the Obama-era surge, and the various resets in strategy and force allocations that occurred from 2011 onward, culminating in the 2018-2020 peace talks. Malkasian lived through much of it, and draws from his own experiences to provide a unique vantage point on the war. Today, the Taliban is the most powerful faction, and sees victory as probable. The ultimate outcome after America leaves is inherently unpredictable given the multitude of actors there, but one thing is sure: the war did not go as America had hoped. Although the al-Qa'eda leader Osama bin Laden was killed and no major attack on the American homeland was carried out after 2001, the United States was unable to end the violence or hand off the war to the Afghan authorities, which could not survive without US military backing. The American War in Afghanistan explains why the war had such a disappointing outcome.

Wise and all-encompassing, The American War in Afghanistan provides a truly vivid portrait of the conflict in all of its phases that will remain the authoritative account for years to come.

Reviews

Goodreads review by James on December 23, 2021

America's involvement in Afghanistan has been a long one. We covertly supported the mujahedin's resistance to Soviet invasion in the 1980s. During the 1990s we uneasily watched the embers of that war and the resulting civil war while the Taliban brought a harsh stability to the country. Our own dire......more

Goodreads review by Michael on September 19, 2021

If you're looking for an informative and comprehensive account of the war that provides mainstream criticisms of the US's "mistakes", then Malkasian's book is for you. If you're like me though and view this country's aggression against Afghanistan through the lens of American Empire, then you'll be......more

Goodreads review by Mohit on July 23, 2021

The book was released as soon as the American troops withdraw from Afghanistan. The book is an attempt to give the Americans a clean cheat. No other country would survive a political massacre, other than the Americans, by being in this war. Imagine, china being militarily involved in a region for 20......more

Goodreads review by Lynn on August 27, 2021

Extraordinary book about the American War in Afghanistan. The author is an excellent writer who presents his information clearly and in a manner that captures the reader. Most interesting to me is the rose of ISIS and it’s effects on the Taliban and bringing Russia and Iran into the country to dampe......more

Goodreads review by Igor on December 08, 2022

I devoured the book in three days and very much enjoyed reading it. But while Malkasian displays a deep knowledge of Afghanistan and its people, and makes a serious attempt to explain American defeat, when I finished the book I was left disappointed. Perhaps we need more time to pass before Malkasia......more