Name: Time to end the war in Afghanistan
Uploaded: 2011-07-25T14:56:00Z
Duration: 19 min 45 s
Description: British MP Rory Stewart walked across Afghanistan after 9/11, talking with citizens and warlords alike. Now, a decade later, he asks: Why are Western and coalition forces still fighting there? He shares lessons from past military interventions that worked -- Bosnia, for instance -- and shows that humility and local expertise are the keys to success.

British MP Rory Stewart walked across Afghanistan after 9/11, talking with citizens and warlords alike. Now, a decade later, he asks: Why are Western and coalition forces still fighting there? He shares lessons from past military interventions that worked -- Bosnia, for instance -- and shows that humility and local expertise are the keys to success.

Time to end the war in Afghanistan

Professor, former Member of Parliament, UK

Flooding Afghanistan with money and soldiers has made things worse, not better. After the initial intervention, two and a half million more girls attended school and mobile phones spread rapidly, but escalating aid and force later fueled corruption and violence. The belief that Afghanistan is an existential threat is exaggerated, and repeated promises of a decisive year never materialized. True progress depends on humility, listening to locals, and matching actions to what really matters.