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David KilcullenContributing Editor for Military Affairs

David Kilcullen served in the Australian Army from 1985 to 2007. He was a senior counter-insurgency adviser to General David Petraeus in Iraq in 2007-08, followed by special adviser for counter-insurgency to secretary of state Condoleezza Rice. He is the author of six books, including most recently The Dragons and the Snakes: How the Rest Learned to Fight the West.

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9/11World

SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 : Firefighters form human chain up rubble of World Trade Centre in New York 11/09/01 as they search for missing colleagues after terrorist attack caused collapse of building.USA / Crime / Bombing / Terrorism

The US is in decline, and we’re back to square one

After 20 years of the war on terror, now we face an enemy that is stronger, better armed and emboldened.

David Kilcullen

inquirerInquirer

Taliban fighters sit over a vehicle on a street in Laghman province on August 15. Picture: AFP

After the fall: what’s next for Afghanistan

Much as the Taliban may like to claim the war is over, it is far from finished. Afghanistan is collapsing in real time and a new bloodbath beginning. Now the world has a choice to make.

David Kilcullen

Inside storyWorld

TOPSHOT - Taliban fighters on a pick-up truck move around a market area, flocked with local Afghan people at the Kote Sangi area of Kabul on August 17, 2021, after Taliban seized control of the capital following the collapse of the Afghan government. (Photo by Hoshang Hashimi / AFP)

Critical moment that sealed fate of Kabul

For a moment on Saturday, it looked as though Kabul might actually hold. But within hours, it was all over.

David Kilcullen

inquirerInquirer

Afghan militia gather with their weapons to support Afghanistan security forces against the Taliban, in Afghan warlord and former Mujahideen Ismail Khan's house in Herat on July 9. Picture: AFP

Making sense of the Afghan fiasco, and how to fix it

There are four moves that could stabilise the situation long enough to get talks back on track.

David Kilcullen

commentaryCommentary

Diggers at war in a nation at peace

Were the 20 years of the war on terror worth the cost? I know I often find myself asking that question.

David Kilcullen

InquirerInquirer

(FILES) In this file photo dust kicks off the ground during an operation by US Army soldiers attached to the 2nd platoon, C-Coy. 1-23 Infantry based at Zangabad foward operating base in Panjwai ditrict after Anti Personnel Obstacle Breaching System -- abbreviated as A-POBS (charges fired by rocket and trigger safe detonation of IED's used to make roadside bombs) -- detonate on a nearby road during a dawn operation at Naja-bien village on September 23, 2012. - US President Joe Biden will formally announce on April 14, 2021 the withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan before this year's 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, finally ending America's longest war despite mounting fears of a Taliban victory, officials said. The drawdown delays only by around five months an agreement with the Taliban by former president Donald Trump to pull troops, amid a growing consensus in Washington that little more can be achieved. (Photo by Tony KARUMBA / AFP)

Biden’s withdrawal ‘worst of both worlds’

America’s move to pull out of the ‘forever war’ in Afghanistan will only bolster both the Taliban and China.

David Kilcullen

CommentaryCommentary

An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump gather in front of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, U.S., January 6, 2021. REUTERS/Leah Millis

American mythology dies on the Hill

The dramatic unrest in Washington yesterday seems to represent a historic shift in the conflict dynamic in the US.

David Kilcullen

inquirerInquirer

Six years on and Australian SAS troops are still patrolling the rugged and dangerous mountains and valleys of Afghanistan 25 Jan 2009.

There are reasons, not excuses, for the army’s nightmare

Real wars are fought by human beings, not monsters or mythical bronzed Anzacs. This painful reckoning must surely include asking ourselves whether Afghanistan was worth it.

David Kilcullen

lebanonInquirer

TOPSHOT - EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / A picture shows a destroyed silo at the scene of an explosion at the port in the Lebanese capital Beirut on August 4, 2020. - Two huge explosion rocked the Lebanese capital Beirut, wounding dozens of people, shaking buildings and sending huge plumes of smoke billowing into the sky. Lebanese media carried images of people trapped under rubble, some bloodied, after the massive explosions, the cause of which was not immediately known. (Photo by STR / AFP)

The last bloody straw for a crumbling nation

The deadly Beirut blast might force its corrupt leaders to accept reform.

David Kilcullen

inquirerInquirer

A militia group with no political affiliation from Michigan stands in front of the Governors office after protesters occupied the state capitol building during a vote to approve the extension of Governor Gretchen Whitmer's emergency declaration/stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at the state capitol in Lansing, Michigan, U.S. April 30, 2020. REUTERS/Seth Herald - RC28FG9SHVHD

Home of the hateful, fearful, heavily armed

Coronavirus is threatening to ignite a tinderbox of grievances in the US. The growing parallels with Iraq, Lebanon and Somalia are real and disturbing.

David Kilcullen

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/david-kilcullen/page/3