A DOZEN YEARS ago Afghanistan was sliding into carnage. The Taliban, who had scattered back into their villages after the American invasion in 2001, had regrouped and were launching attacks daily on American forces. America was split. President Barack Obama argued that Afghanistan's elected rulers, though deeply flawed, were much better than the jihadists they had replaced, and should be protected. His vice-president, Joe Biden, wanted to draw down troops, leaving only a small counter-terrorist force. Mr Biden lost the argument; an extra 17,000 American troops flew into Kabul to prop up the government. Today Mr Biden is president, and faces a similar dilemma. The Taliban are as strong as they have been since 2001. The Afghan state, backed by America and its nato allies, is tottering. This time, however, Mr Biden is in a position to get his way. By September nth, two decades exactly since al-Qaeda terrorists felled the twin towers, prompting America to overthrow the Taliban regime that harboured them, almost all the remaining 2,500 American troops in Afghanistan will have left. A handful will stay to guard the embassy. The decision was made against the advice of America's generals, who had warned Mr Biden (and Donald Trump before him) not to pull out (see Asia section).
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机译：十几年前阿富汗被推入阵发。 2001年美国入侵后散落在村庄的塔利班已经重新组合，并在美国军队每天发动袭击事件。美国被分裂了。 President Barack Obama argued that Afghanistan's elected rulers, though deeply flawed, were much better than the jihadists they had replaced, and should be protected.他的副总统乔·拜登希望吸引部队，只留下一个小的反恐力量。拜登先生失去了论点;一个额外的17,000名美国军队飞往喀布尔来支撑政府。今天拜登先生是总统，并面临着类似的困境。塔利班自2001年以来一直强劲。美国及其北约盟友支持的阿富汗国家正在艰巨。然而，这一次，拜登先生在一个职位上才能实现他的方式。截至9月，二十年以来，自亚QAEDA恐怖分子击倒了双塔，促使美国推翻塔利班政权，塔利班政权遭到困扰的政权，几乎所有剩余的2500名阿富汗的美国军队都将离开。少数将留下守护大使馆。该决定是针对美国将军的建议作出的，他警告了拜登先生（和他面前的唐纳德特朗普）不撤出（见亚洲部分）。
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