The Enduring Conflict: A Historical Perspective On America's Longest War

The longest war in US history was the war in Afghanistan, lasting nearly two decades and coming at the financial cost of close to $1 trillion. The war started in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks, as the US invaded Afghanistan in response to the Taliban providing refuge for al Qaeda. The Taliban regime fell within weeks, but US troops remained in the country until 2021, with the war spanning four presidencies.

The Vietnam War

Roots of the War

Vietnam, a nation in Southeast Asia, had been under French colonial rule since the 19th century. During World War II, Japanese forces invaded Vietnam, and political leader Ho Chi Minh formed the Viet Minh, or the League for the Independence of Vietnam, to fight off the occupiers and the French colonial administration.

After Japan's defeat in World War II, it withdrew its forces from Vietnam, leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control. Ho Chi Minh's Viet Minh forces rose up, taking over Hanoi and declaring a Democratic Republic of Vietnam with Ho Chi Minh as president. France, seeking to regain control, backed Emperor Bao and set up the state of Vietnam in 1949, with Saigon as its capital. Both sides wanted a unified Vietnam, but while Ho Chi Minh and his supporters wanted a communist nation, Bao and others wanted a Vietnam with close ties to the West.

US Involvement

The US had been providing funding, armaments, and training to South Vietnam's government and military since Vietnam's partition into North and South in 1954. In 1961, US President John F. Kennedy expanded the military aid program, committing US soldiers to the region. Kennedy's decision was influenced by Cold War-era fears about the "domino theory," which posited that if Vietnam fell to communism, democracies throughout Southeast Asia would follow.

Kennedy's successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, continued this policy, raising the number of US troops in South Vietnam to 23,000 by the end of 1964. Political instability in South Vietnam and two alleged North Vietnamese attacks on US naval vessels in the Gulf of Tonkin incident led to the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in 1964, granting Johnson broad powers to handle the conflict.

Escalation and US Withdrawal

US combat units were introduced to Vietnam in 1965, and by 1969, more than 500,000 US military personnel were stationed there. North Vietnam, with support from the Soviet Union and China, sent combat troops to the South and intensified the conflict. The US responded with a large-scale strategic bombing campaign against North Vietnam, known as Operation Rolling Thunder, and conducted search and destroy operations in the South.

Despite the increasing US involvement, the war proved costly and unpopular domestically. The Tet Offensive in 1968, a series of attacks on cities and military bases in South Vietnam, shocked the US public and caused support for the war to fade. Anti-war protests and a growing anti-war movement further pressured the US government to seek a way out of the conflict.

In 1969, President Richard Nixon began a policy of "Vietnamization," withdrawing US troops while providing increased support to South Vietnam's military. US ground forces had largely withdrawn by early 1972, and the Paris Peace Accords of January 1973 marked the official withdrawal of all US forces.

Fall of South Vietnam

Fighting continued between North and South Vietnam even after the US withdrawal. North Vietnamese forces launched a massive invasion of the South in 1975, capturing Saigon and renaming it Ho Chi Minh City. South Vietnam fell, and the country was unified under communist control in July 1976.

The human costs of the war were devastating. Vietnam estimated that up to 2 million civilians died, and about 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong fighters were killed. The US suffered more than 58,000 casualties, and South Vietnam's losses were estimated to be between 200,000 and 250,000 soldiers. The war also had a lasting impact on those who served, with high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder, divorce, suicide, alcoholism, and drug addiction among US veterans.

The War in Afghanistan

The first phase of the war was brief, with the Taliban quickly ousted from power. However, the Taliban leadership relocated to southern Afghanistan and across the border to Pakistan, from where they waged an insurgency against the Western-backed government in Kabul. The second phase of the war, from 2002 until 2008, was marked by a US strategy of defeating the Taliban militarily and rebuilding core institutions of the Afghan state. This phase also saw the election of Hamid Karzai as the first democratically elected head of Afghanistan.

In 2009, US President Barack Obama announced a new strategy for the war effort, linking success in Afghanistan to a stable Pakistan. This phase saw the deployment of additional US troops and a shift in focus to counterinsurgency operations. Despite these efforts, the Taliban continued to gain strength, and by 2014, the war had become a stalemate.

In 2014, the US-led coalition formally ended its combat mission, and the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) were put in charge of the country's security. However, the ANDSF struggled to hold territory and defend population centers, and the Taliban continued to make gains. In 2020, the US and the Taliban signed a peace deal, and US troops began to withdraw from Afghanistan.

In 2021, the Taliban launched a rapid military offensive and seized control of major cities, eventually entering Kabul and establishing a new government. The US completed its troop withdrawal in August 2021, bringing an end to the 20-year war. The war had significant costs, with thousands of US and allied troops killed and wounded, and countless Afghan civilians killed and displaced.

The Philippine-American War

The war was sparked by tensions that arose after the United States annexed the Philippines under the Treaty of Paris at the conclusion of the Spanish–American War, rather than recognising the Philippines' declaration of independence. The US decision to annex the Philippines was motivated by a desire for commercial opportunities in Asia, concerns that Filipinos were incapable of self-rule, and fears that another power like Germany or Japan might control the Philippines and gain a strategic advantage in the Pacific.

The war began on February 4, 1899, with the Battle of Manila, in which 15,000 armed Filipino militiamen fought 19,000 US soldiers. The battle resulted in a decisive American victory, with 44 Americans killed and 194 wounded, and an estimated 700 Filipino soldiers killed and 3,300 wounded.

The war was fought in two phases. The first phase, from February to November 1899, saw Filipino forces attempt to wage a conventional war against the better-trained and equipped US troops. This proved to be a fatal mistake, and Filipino forces suffered severe losses. The second phase was marked by the Filipinos' shift to guerrilla-style warfare, which extended into the spring of 1902.

The war was brutal, with atrocities committed by both sides. US forces burned villages, implemented civilian reconcentration policies, and tortured suspected guerrillas, while Filipino fighters also tortured captured US soldiers and terrorised civilians who cooperated with American forces. The war resulted in at least 200,000 Filipino civilian deaths, mostly from famine and diseases such as cholera. Some estimates for civilian deaths reach up to a million.

The war ended on July 2, 1902, when US President Theodore Roosevelt declared a general amnesty and proclaimed the conflict over. However, minor uprisings and insurrections against American rule continued periodically in the years that followed. The war had a significant impact on the Philippines, changing the culture of the islands and leading to the rise of Protestantism, the disestablishment of the Catholic Church, and the adoption of English as the primary language.

The War in North-West Pakistan

The US has justified its involvement in the region by citing Pakistan's role in harbouring and aiding terrorists, including Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces. In 2002, joint US and Pakistani raids led to the arrest of Zayn al-Abidn Muhammed Hasayn Abu Zubaydah, a high-ranking Al-Qaeda official. This was followed by the arrest of Ramzi bin al-Shibh, a financial backer of Al-Qaeda, and Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the third-highest ranking member of Al-Qaeda, in the same year.

Despite these successes, Pakistan has faced accusations from multiple countries, including Afghanistan, India, and the UK, of sponsoring terrorism and financing terrorist groups. In 2006, NATO accused Pakistan of aiding the Taliban in Afghanistan, although they later admitted there was no evidence to support this claim. Pakistan has consistently denied these accusations, asserting that they are actively fighting militants within their borders.

The conflict in North-West Pakistan has had severe consequences for civilians. Pakistani military operations, US drone strikes, extrajudicial killings, sectarian violence, and explosive remnants of war have all contributed to significant civilian losses. The war has also had a humanitarian impact, with millions of Afghan refugees fleeing to Pakistan to escape the war in Afghanistan.

Efforts have been made to address the civilian cost of the conflict and provide amends to survivors. However, as of 2010, most Pakistani war victims had not received any assistance, compensation, or recognition for the harm they suffered. The Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) has proposed specific measures to warring parties and their partners to acknowledge and make amends for civilian harm.

The Northwest Indian War

The conflict arose after the Treaty of Paris, which ended the American Revolutionary War, granted the land comprising the Northwest Territory to the United States. This territory, initially known as the Ohio Country and the Illinois Country, had been inhabited by numerous Native American peoples. With European-American settlers encroaching west of the Appalachian Mountains, a Huron-led confederacy formed in 1785 to resist the usurpation of Indian lands, declaring that lands north and west of the Ohio River were Indian territory.

The United States Army, consisting mostly of untrained recruits and volunteer militiamen, suffered a series of major defeats, including the Harmar campaign (1790) and St. Clair's defeat (1791), which are among the worst defeats in the history of the U.S. Army. St. Clair's loss destroyed most of the U.S. Army and left the country vulnerable.

In response, President George Washington directed the army to enforce U.S. sovereignty over the territory. Washington chose Revolutionary War veteran General Anthony Wayne to organize and train a proper fighting force. Wayne took command of the new Legion of the United States in 1792 and spent a year building, training, and acquiring supplies. After a methodical campaign through western Ohio Country, Wayne led his Legion to a decisive victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794.

The defeated tribes were forced to cede extensive territory, including much of present-day Ohio, in the Treaty of Greenville in 1795. The Jay Treaty, also signed that year, arranged for the cession of British Great Lakes outposts on U.S. territory. The Northwest Indian War is considered the longest war in U.S. history, lasting nine years and ten months.

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