V. KORGUN Doctor of Historical Sciences After the events of September 11, 2001, the United States became the most important factor influencing the development of the internal political situation in Afghanistan. All the major events in the country in recent years have taken place with the direct or indirect participation of the United States. On October 7, 2001, the United States, together with its NATO allies, launched Operation Enduring Freedom against the Taliban, with the approval of the UN Security Council. The main goal was declared to be the elimination of the hotbed of international terrorism in Afghanistan, represented by the Taliban and the Al-Qaeda organization that supported them. MISCALCULATIONS OF THE US STRATEGY In November 2001, the Taliban resistance was broken, and armed formations of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance entered Kabul. The Taliban regime was eliminated, but its military and political objectives were only partially achieved. The main forces of the Taliban movement were not defeated, but only weakened. Most of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda leaders, led by Mullah M. Omar and Osama bin Laden, have fled to neighboring Pakistan along with a significant portion of their armed forces, where they have taken refuge among the Pashtun tribes of the "independent strip" - self-governing areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Meanwhile, the operation revealed significant shortcomings in the US strategy in Afghanistan. Massive bombardments in Afghanistan were accompanied by serious losses among the civilian population. The military action has worsened the humanitarian crisis in the country, causing a flood of refugees and disrupting the delivery of humanitarian aid to 1.5 million hungry people. The number of internally displaced persons increased by about 360,000 and the number of refugees to Iran and Pakistan increased by 200,000.1 The bombing was perceived by many Afghans as a war not against terrorism, but against Afghanistan. This led to the eme ... Read more