I have been in Washington since 2021 and during this time, I have interacted with a wide variety of stakeholders involved in Afghan matters.
Common among these people are feelings of frustration and disappointment, as well as the tendency to blame the current or previous United States administrations and, particularly, Afghans for today’s disastrous situation.
Everyone appears helpless and wonders what is going to happen next. Afghans, my people, are equally disheartened about upheavals in our recent history, and exhausted by the repeating cycle of collapse and conflict. Today, most of us are ready to abandon our homes and migrate abroad, worried, as we are, about our children’s future. Optimism about the arrival of better times is a rare thing among Afghans these days.