Why does Afghanistan matter? It matters to me because I fought there. Lost friends there. From a remote base in Helmand, I served alongside Afghans who I first worried might kill us, but then learned to trust with my life. Although that feels a long time ago and a long way away, I think about it every day.
Eighteen months ago, the Taliban’s victory ended everything we were fighting for in Afghanistan. Ukraine then provided the perfect excuse to policymakers already eager to forget the trauma of that failure. Ukraine is colossally important – but a year on from Russia’s invasion, we forget Afghanistan at our peril.
