The US was supposed to leave Afghanistan by 2017. Now military commanders are talking about a commitment that could see troops staying in the country for decades. They're facing a resilient Taliban insurgency as well as groups such as al Qaeda and the Islamic State group. There are now nearly 10,000 US forces in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, power struggles within the Afghan government have undermined its effectiveness on security as well as on other issues.

Barnett Rubin is a former advisor to the late Richard Holbrooke, who was the Obama administration’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2009 to 2010. Dr. Rubin tells FRANCE 24's Armen Georgian about the shortcomings in US policy towards those two countries, and assesses the prospects for peace talks with the Taliban.

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