The long-term military intervention in Afghanistan was ultimately ineffective because the Taliban gained more power than they had before the invasion.

“if you look at Afghanistan for example and all the loss of life and the trillions of dollars and material in 20 years, the Taliban ended up with more territory and more power than when we invaded.”

The international community should support aid organizations in Afghanistan rather than cutting off funds, as punishing the population will not alter the Taliban government's behavior.

“I think it is possible to set up trust funds with the World Bank and the UN to make sure that the money is used to pay for teachers and doctors and I think that's perfectly doable and I think we shouldn't punish the people of Afghanistan in the belief that that's somehow going to change the behavior”