But even as diplomatic efforts gallop ahead, a crucial question looms over talks: Would a Taliban legitimized by an international peace agreement prevent foreign terrorists from plotting attacks from Afghan soil like Al Qaeda did before Sept. 11, 2001? It was the Taliban government’s decision to protect bin Laden that triggered the subsequent U.S.-led invasion.
Top military brass clearly feel there is a danger of history repeating.
“Were we not to put the pressure on Al Qaeda, ISIS and other groups in the region that we are putting on today, it is our assessment that in a period of time their capability would reconstitute,” Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford said earlier this month at an event organized by the Washington Post. “They have today the intent and would have in the future the capability to do what we saw on 9/11.”
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