ABSTRACT
Our concluding ‘lessons learned’ chapter reflects on what can we derive from the various explanations as we look forward. Given the book's conclusions as to why the Taliban were able to take over, what knowledge is useful for future peace, stabilisation and reconstruction efforts? In the first part, we look across the chapters and present the explanations for why the Taliban regained power. The second part of the chapter identifies five overarching problem complexes that have proven to be fundamental challenges and thus relevant for understanding the development and outcome of the war. These are outlined under the headings: (1) knowledge disconnect, (2) fragmentation, (3) civil–military (im)balance, (4) peace in war and (5) legitimacy. Learning points are extracted based on the problem complexes and can be used in the future as a ‘warning checklist’ that should not be overlooked when decisions are made regarding Danish participation in international missions; without implying that there is now a manual for ensuring successful interventions.
