by Abdul Haleem
KABUL, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan remains one of the main challenges for the new U.S. administration under President Donald Trump with local observers suggesting he will have to review the strategy of the war on terror in Afghanistan to conclude the longest U.S. war in its history successfully.
President Trump, who was sworn-in as the 45th U.S. president in a ceremony on Friday, in his maiden yet short speech made after his inauguration, reportedly said, "We will unite the civilized world against radical Islamic terrorism to eradicate it completely from the face of the earth."
However, he didn't mention the name of Afghanistan where the U.S.-coalition forces have been fighting since October 2001 to eliminate the terrorist forces of al-Qaida, the Taliban and associated groups.
"The war on terror, initiated by former U.S. President George W. Bush in Afghanistan, and continued by President Obama would also last during President Trump's tenure," renown analyst, General (Rtd) Atiqullah Omarkhil, told Xinhua.
Backing his notion, the military expert and political observer argued that the "United States itself doesn't want to end the war in Afghanistan" saying "the U.S.-led coalition forces might have already won the war on terror when it had more than 150,000-strong multi-national troops in Afghanistan if she fought sincerely."
"The U.S.-led coalition forces overthrew the al-Qaida backed Taliban regime within weeks in late 2001 but the 'cat and mouse' war has been continuing over the past 15 years," the analyst highlighted.
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