America’s war in Afghanistan has now lasted eight years. If it continues for two more years, it will have lasted longer than the Vietnam War. Can the fighting in Afghanistan ever end?

What makes it difficult for us to end this war, or to reach at least an acceptable armistice, is the asymmetry of the fighting. The Taliban and tribal leaders instigate frequent suicide attacks, not only against our forces but also against Afghanistan’s military, its police, and its government officials. The Taliban also want to keep women illiterate; to this end, they kill schoolgirls and their teachers.

Extremist jihadists have inflicted large casualties on the United States. The Taliban, by contrast, are more obsessive, clinging to bizarre compulsions. For example, they destroyed the Bamyan Buddha statues, even though many Muslim nations urged them not to. When the Taliban were in control of Kabul, they also tried to destroy a treasure of antiquities in the National Museum. Fortunately, museum curators hid valuable items, and other items were smuggled abroad. Strangely, Afghanistan’s National Museum has now decided to exhibit all the antiquities it previously hid, and items that were smuggled out of the country that have been returned. This seems like a foolish invitation to the Taliban to destroy the museum’s entire treasure.

America’s first military engagement in Afghanistan began 1979, in reaction to the invasion by Soviet forces. By 1989, the mujahideen — with indirect American support — had forced the Soviet Union to withdraw. But then the United States lost interest in Afghanistan. During 1990s, the Taliban managed to gain control.

America’s second military engagement was in response to the 9/11 attacks. The Bush administration decided to avoid imposing a full-scale American occupation force, and instead tried to build a democratic government for Afghanistan, with Hamid Karzai as the president. Within a few years, this plan had failed. Hence, the Obama administration now struggles to design a war plan that will prevent Afghanistan from harboring terrorists or al-Qaeda but will let us end the war soon.

Alas, it is unlikely that such a plan will work. Instead of using our military within Afghanistan, we should develop a system for interdicting terrorists who come from Afghanistan to launch attacks in the United Sates or within the territory of our allies. Also, it has been reported that al-Qaeda is short of money. But the Taliban controls the large poppy fields in Afghanistan and can export the opium produced from the poppies. The sale of opium in Europe, Russia, and other countries amply finances the Taliban’s unrelenting warfare. Instead of trying to destroy the poppy planted within Afghanistan, we should interdict the opium export from the outside. We would be fully supported by our NATO allies since they want to curb the drug consumption in their countries.

– Fred C. Iklé is a distinguished scholar at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the former undersecretary of defense for policy in the Reagan administration, and the author of Every War Must End and Annihilation from Within.