How mission creep undermined NATO’s mission in Afghanistan

Story by Stephen J. Thorne

Eighteen years of Western operations in Afghanistan were doomed by “mission creep,” as allied nations poured undue effort and resources into helping rebuild the country rather than focus on their core mission of defeating terrorism, says the head of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Dec. 1 that NATO went into Afghanistan to prevent terrorists from continuing to use the country as an operations and training base. On that score, it succeeded—at least for now.

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Hirohito’s role

Story by Sharon Adams

In December 1941, Emperor Hirohito of Japan agreed, by some accounts reluctantly, to go to war against the United States.

Although Japan had technically been part of the Second World War since signing the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy in September 1940, its war with China had preoccupied its attention.

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