The Taliban on Wednesday celebrated the three-year anniversary of the disastrous Biden-Harris withdrawal that gave them power in Afghanistan, more secure in power than ever despite constant complaints from the international community about their appalling human rights offenses. Taliban victory parades on Wednesday included the huge amount of American military equipment abandoned to the terrorist regime by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Each former American military vehicle was festooned with the black-and-white flags of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
” Biden’s early vows to keep the Taliban regime completely isolated from the world community have given way to a more nuanced “mix of isolation and selective engagement,” as the Crisis Group delicately phrased it on Wednesday: Western countries, frustrated especially at the Taliban regime’s restrictions on the rights of girls and women, have enforced a raft of sanctions, asset freezes and banking restrictions. At the same time, they have devoted billions of dollars to mitigating poverty and preventing famine, while some have kept in discreet contact with the Taliban about security issues. Countries nearer to Afghanistan have gone further in dealing with the new regime in Kabul, striking trade agreements and accrediting Taliban ambassadors.
They view concerns like security and water sharing as pressing and, in some cases, they are readier to overlook the Taliban’s treatment of girls and women – or at least to be.