A Conversation with Dr. Henry R. Nau on Afghanistan

LincInterviews is again joined by Dr. Henry R. Nau, Professor Emeritus of Political Science and International Affairs, Elliott School of International Affairs, The George Washington University, also senior staff member and White House sherpa on President Ronald Reagan’s National Security Council, 1981-1983. 

With this conversation, Dr. Nau discusses his article entitled, "Why Nation-Building Is Inevitable," posted in August of 2021 on the Providence Institute on Religion and Democracy Website.

In introduction, the article states, "The lesson many draw from the debacle in Afghanistan is no more nation-building. But you can’t ignore nation-building because military threats to the United States originate in one of two places—unstable or failed states and aggressive totalitarian societies. No democracy threatens the United States today. That fact alone suggests that the type of domestic regime matters greatly in the calculus of America’s national interests."

The article moves on to address such questions as: Should we stay indefinitely in places like Afghanistan and Iraq? What other lessons can we draw from the experience of Afghanistan? 

In this discussion, Dr. Nau also relates the article to his book, "Perspectives on International Relations,” in which he presents four models of American foreign policy: realism, liberalism, constructivism, and critical theory. To our involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, which of the aforementioned models has the previous and current administration pursued with American foreign policy? 

He comments on China's intentions in Afghanistan, also providing thoughts on the potential silent majority in the Afghan population. Does the Taliban have genuine control of Afghanistan? In closing, Dr. Nau predicts the intermediate and long term survival of the Taliban.