Publication

This policy brief argues that failure in Afghanistan is a realistic prospect, and a new strategy will be required to avoid it. The author discusses what this strategy should look like and what role the EU can play in it. He advocates immediate and concerted action on the part of the EU. The paper points out that the most difficult challenge in dealing with the Taliban is not so much their supply of recruits and money, and mountainous terrain favoring guerrilla warfare, but a comprehensive knowledge of local cultures, languages and tribal hierarchies of which the international community remains ignorant.