The famous American scientist and analyst Noam Chomsky said that the war that the United States started 20 years ago to “fight terrorism” has caused devastation in much of the world.
In an interview, Noam Chomsky, a well-known American scientist and analyst, emphasized the devastating effects of the “war on terror” that began 20 years ago under US leadership.
In an interview with Trout Out on the twentieth anniversary of 9/11, Chomsky said: “Washington’s immediate response to 9/11 was to invade Afghanistan.”
In another part of his speech, he said: “When the United States invaded Afghanistan, the base of fundamentalist and radical terrorism was limited to one corner of Afghanistan. Now this base has spread all over the world. The devastation of much of Central Asia and the Middle East has not increased American power.”
In another part of the interview, Chomsky stated that the “soft power” of the United States had declined even before former President Donald Trump came to power.
He said: “Another dimension is America’s soft power. Here, the United States is in serious decline, and that happened long before Trump inflicted severe damage on the country’s reputation. Even during the Clinton era, political scientists realized that much of the world considered the United States to be the world’s most insurgent country and the greatest external threat to their societies.”
Chomsky further clarified: “During the years of Obama’s presidency, international opinion polls showed that the United States was the greatest threat to world peace without a close rival.”
In another part of his speech, the American scientist and analyst stated that the American war in Iraq and Afghanistan after the events of 9/11 cost the United States over 8 trillion dollars.
Chomsky also noted that the United States had relatively good relations with the Taliban before 9/11. He said: “Before 9/11, Washington had relatively good relations with the Taliban. After 9/11, the United States demanded the extradition of Osama bin Laden, and when the Taliban agreed, Washington rejected the offer, saying, ‘We are not negotiating surrender.”
He further clarified: “The invasion of Afghanistan was not only a violation of international law, but also had no valid excuse. In addition, there is ample evidence now that Afghanistan and al-Qaeda were not the main targets of Bush, Dick Cheney, and Donald Rumsfeld. They looked at a much bigger scene than Afghanistan. Iraq was their first step [after the invasion of Afghanistan] and then the whole region.
The American scientist and analyst went on to criticize Donald Trump’s agreement with the Taliban in February 2020. He said: “In his unilateral agreement to leave Afghanistan, Trump did not even bother to consult with the official Afghan government. Even worse, Trump forced the Afghan government to release 5,000 Taliban militants and reduce economic sanctions against them.”
He added: “He agreed that the Taliban could use violence against the government we support and against the innocent people who helped us keep the Americans safe. All the Taliban needed to do was stopping targeting US or coalition forces and not allow al-Qaeda or other terrorist groups to use Afghan territory to threaten the United States.”
The Taliban group entered Kabul on Sunday after the departure of Ashraf Ghani, the former president of Afghanistan. Analysts see the arrival of Taliban forces as the end of a 20-year effort by the United States and other Western nations to rebuild Afghanistan in a way that suits the West.
Following the February 2020 agreement between the United States and the Taliban and the signing of a “peace agreement” between the two sides, the withdrawal of US troops and allies from Afghanistan began.
The United States and other NATO members invaded Afghanistan in 2001 in response to the 9/11 attacks on the United States, and have continued their military presence and occupation in Afghanistan ever since.