It’s not a contradiction to want to see Afghanistan restored to how it was pre-Soviet invasion; the US is arguably just as responsible as the USSR was for Afghanistan’s fall into religious fundamentalism, due to abandoning its reconstruction following the fall of the Soviet Union.
Undoing that level of cultural damage takes a long time, in order to ensure subsequent generations aren’t radicalised. So while it does suck, it would have taken at least another generation of occupation to shape a more democratic and progressive future for Afghanistan.
Unfortunately, the US isn’t as good at nation building as it once was - it’s actually not as good at a lot of things, as it once was.
It’s not a contradiction to want to see Afghanistan restored to how it was pre-Soviet invasion; the US is arguably just as responsible as the USSR was for Afghanistan’s fall into religious fundamentalism, due to abandoning its reconstruction following the fall of the Soviet Union.
Undoing that level of cultural damage takes a long time, in order to ensure subsequent generations aren’t radicalised. So while it does suck, it would have taken at least another generation of occupation to shape a more democratic and progressive future for Afghanistan.
Unfortunately, the US isn’t as good at nation building as it once was - it’s actually not as good at a lot of things, as it once was.