US Policy Mistakes Led to Afghanistan Republic’s Collapse, Says American Scholar

Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili, a prominent scholar specializing in governance and Afghan studies, has asserted in a recent article published in Democracy journal that the collapse of Afghanistan’s republican system was the result of flawed U.S. policies and planning. She challenged common narratives that blame the fall of the Afghan republic on endemic corruption or a weak political culture.

According to Murtazashvili, structural errors in state-building efforts after 2001—including the concentration of power in the hands of a narrow circle and a disregard for Afghanistan’s ethnic, linguistic, and social diversity—led to the creation of a state that lacked legitimacy among its people. She wrote that the West, rather than fostering inclusive, locally-rooted institutions, merely replicated past authoritarian patterns, resulting in a government that could not withstand the pressure of Taliban advances.

She added that the United States lacked a proper understanding of Afghanistan’s complex realities and, by ignoring local perspectives, set the stage for the rapid collapse of the republic. Her analysis comes as debate continues in academic and political circles over the role of international errors in shaping Afghanistan’s developments over the past two decades.