Vox Sentences - The end of a forever war

America’s longest war has ended; opposition figures are fleeing Russia.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Gabby Birenbaum.

An ending for a 20-year war

UK Ministry of Defense/Getty Images

• For the first time in almost 20 years, no American military personnel were reported present in Afghanistan. The US had maintained its presence through four presidencies after the 2001 invasion. [NPR / Scott Neuman]
• President Joe Biden stuck to the August 31 withdrawal date negotiated by former President Donald Trump after a stunningly fast Taliban advance captured the capital of Kabul. Before leaving, the US military airlifted more than 120,000 people out of the country. [CNN / Nicole Gaouette, Jennifer Hansler, Barbara Starr, and Oren Liebermann]
• The end of America’s “forever war” — and the quick collapse of the US-backed government — has broad implications for President Joe Biden and the state of global affairs, as an example of the limits of American military might. [The Wall Street Journal  / Yaroslav Trofimov and Jeremy Page]
• Qatar is poised to take on an outsized role in negotiations with Afghanistan, given the government’s longtime contacts with the Taliban and cooperation with the US military during the evacuation. [The Washington Post / Steve Hendrix, Liz Sly, and Kareem Fahim]
• The failures of Afghanistan have reignited a debate among NATO allies, who lost more than 1,000 soldiers in the mission, on whether there is an over-reliance on US leadership of the alliance. [Vox / Jen Kirby]
• Biden has believed for years that the war effort was futile, and no amount of time spent there would keep the Taliban at bay. His team is hoping that the short-term losses in his approval rating will be quickly overcome, given Americans’ general distaste for the war. [The Associated Press / Aamer Madhani and Zeke Miller]
• With so many problems at home right now, some swing voters seem hesitant to blame Biden for the failures of the war and are focused on more domestic issues. [The New York Times / Jennifer Medina]

An exodus of the Russian opposition

• As Russia prepares for parliamentary elections next month, there has been a crackdown on voices opposed to the government, including the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Combined with reports of government cash payouts to voters, disillusionment has set in among Russia’s opposition. [The Guardian / Andrew Roth]
• Most opposition candidates have been removed from the election because of affiliations with groups deemed enemies of the state by the government. Many have fled the country, are living in exile, or are in house arrest or jail.  [RadioFreeEurope]
• An increasingly large group of Russian dissidents and journalists have gone into exile, a situation that recalls the days of the end of the Soviet Union. [The New York Times / Anton Troianovski]
• Political oppression has marked the rule of President Vladimir Putin. But this year, instead of silencing a select number of people and groups, Putin is cracking down on people from all parts of Russian civil society. [The Washington Post / Maria Snegovaya]

After being dumped as the host of Jeopardy, Mike Richards has now been ousted from his role as the show’s executive producer. [Axios / Yacob Reyes]

• Three progressive House Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), are calling on President Biden to replace Jerome Powell as the chair of the Federal Reserve, saying the Fed needs to take a greater role in combating climate change and promoting racial and economic justice. [Politico / Victoria Guida]
• Ahead of a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, President Biden promised $60 million in military aid to combat Russian aggression. [The Hill / Laura Kelly]
• Honolulu’s mayor announced new proof-of-vaccination requirements for most activities on Oahu. [The Honolulu Star-Advocate / Ashley Mizuo]

“Was our intelligence really so poor? Was our understanding of the Afghan government so weak? Was our knowledge on the ground so inadequate? Or did we just think we had to follow the United States, and on a wing and a prayer it would be all right on the night?”

[Former British Prime Minister Teresa May, on lessons learned from the War in Afghanistan]

Vox’s Sean Illing talks with professor and media researcher Nikki Usher about her new book News for the Rich, White, and Blue. They discuss racial, gender, and class biases in the industry, developing a “post-newspaper consciousness,” and the role of place in shaping our civic life. [Spotify]

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