ISIS and Taliban: U.S. Strategies and Prospects

Abstract

Afghanistan has been facing insurgency for the last several decades. At first, Taliban were successful in getting control of Kabul. Then it was the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) that sought to be a possible successor of the Taliban. As the deadline of the U.S. withdrawal was approaching, the internal security situation of Afghanistan was also deteriorating. The mutual coordination or conflict between the Taliban and ISIS has been termed as one of the deciding factors for their success or failure in Afghanistan. However, the ground realities show that there is little chance of their nexus because both are fighting to gain power. U.S. strategies in combating both will certainly impact the overall scenario alongside the role of the regional players. In view of the ground realities of Afghanistan, this paper analyzes the potential of the Taliban and the ISIS to gain control of Afghanistan through forceful means.