They didn't beat nato.  They just hid till we left.  When you beat someone so bad that they won't come out and fight that doesn't mean they won lol,(reply>), Exactly. From a purely military standpoint. the U.S. and its allies thoroughly kicked the Taliban's ass within <b>weeks</b> of arriving in-country in the Fall of 2001. After that, there wasn't anything more to prove. NATO and the U.S. disengaged from initiating combat with Taliban long before they officially left the country. By the end, it was pretty much just anti-terror/IS operations. The Taliban's victory in Afghanistan was a political victory, not a military victory. NATO consistently out-performed the Taliban by every measure, and won every engagement. The Taliban can and should celebrate their victory, but they and others should also be under no illusions that they "beat" the U.S. If killing Afghans was truly in our hearts as American citizens, we could turn that entire country into a parking-lot with very little effort and in very short order. <br><br>It was never about killing people. It was about standing up an effective professional military capable of defending a democratically-elected government that represents and ensures the internationally-recognized human rights of all Afghans, regardless of tribe or even gender. Corruption in the Afghan military and government made that goal all but impossible. As untold numbers of cash -- we're talking huge pallets of American cash were dropped into the country, earmarked for defending the Afghan government and people. The commanders  pocketed this money, instead of ensuring their men were well-equipped, well-trained, and most importantly, well-paid. It's because of this corruption that so many Afghan soldiers felt so little allegiance and patriotism towards their corrupt-as-fuck government, and if they didn't burn their uniforms and walk home, they surrendered when the Taliban attacked, without even firing a single shot. <br><br>The Afghan military and government were not worth fighting for. And American politicians LIED to the American people about this... for YEARS. They knew about the corruption and the incompetence and the lack of a cohesive military that could effectively stand against the Taliban... and they ignored it, and did nothing but crow about the political successes we were achieving in Afghanistan. And it was all horse shit. A lot of people knew it anyway, if they paid attention... but the average American was completely clueless to just how dire the situation was and had been for years. And when Trump finally signed the capitulation agreement, the Taliban had won. They had successfully waited us out.