Well, the trend lines that all of us see today are certainly troubling.
...But that date, as soon as six months, is that correct? Well, there are a lot of possibilities out there. I mean, what I would say is that the Afghan government retains significant military capabilities. The big question, it seems to me and to all of my colleagues at CIA and across the intelligence community, is whether or not those capabilities can be exercised with the kind of political willpower and unity of leadership that's absolutely essential to resist the Taliban.
...Fundamentally, it seems to me and to our analysts this is a question of willpower and unity of leadership and the ability of the Afghan military and security services to consolidate their positions, which are in the process of trying to do right now. But again, I have to be honest, I mean, those trend lines are troubling right now, too. At CIA, our principal mission is to stay focused on the danger that al-Qaida or ISIS will try to reconstitute themselves in Afghanistan.
...Well, trend line, as I said, is troubling. We've seen significant Taliban military advances. But I do think it's important to recognize that the Afghan government still has significant capabilities. The question, again, as it is so often in these kind of cases, is about political willpower and unity of leadership. They have the capacity to resist, but that requires that kind of willpower.
William Burns NPR
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