Episode Notes:

On Thursday, the U.S. and Taliban representatives resumed peace negotiations in Qatar. This round begins with the backdrop of the brutal suicide attack in Kabul attributed to the Islamic State that killed at least 63 people last week.

Craig Whiteside, Associate Professor of National Security Affairs at the U.S. Naval War College's Monterey Program at the Naval Post Graduate School, joins the WarCast to discuss how the Islamic State's activity in Afghanistan may determine the country's future.

[ 0:17 ] Introduction
[ 1:15 ] Status of the talks
[ 2:04 ] The attack by the Islamic State last week
[ 4:07 ] Impact of attack on negotiations
[ 6:07 ] Plausible Taliban and Afghan government versus the Islamic State
[ 8:52 ] Risk of U.S. being drawn back to Afghanistan

Twitter: @CraigAWhiteside

Note: For more on the Islamic State in Afghanistan, the article referenced in this talk is here.