The few times I have flown into Kabul, the descent offered an intriguing view — the sprawling expanse of Bagram airbase, lying just off the flight path, massive runways and a concrete sprawl ringed by mountains. Bagram radiated an aura of strategic purpose, a reminder that Afghanistan, for all its rugged isolation, was coveted by empires.

Now, four years after the last helicopter lifted off in 2021, there are reports of the US eyeing a return to Bagram. It is an idea laced with irony — Washington, having left Afghanistan in haste and humiliation, now seeks to reinsert itself, possibly through an understanding with the Taliban it once fought. The logic, though, is cold and strategic: Afghanistan is too central, too exposed, and too unpredictable to be left unobserved.

For two decades, Bag

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