There’s only one real indicator of victory in Afghanistan, and President Donald Trump skipped past it in his speech Monday night. Victory in this nearly 16-year U.S. war will come when the Afghan people stand unified behind their government, willing to risk their lives to defend their own country from internal and external threats.

Trump did underscore the importance of Afghans taking greater responsibility, but it was buried in macho references to Americans “attacking our enemies” and “obliterating ISIS.” Until Afghans come to value nationhood and the freedoms that accompanied the 2001 U.S. ouster of Taliban oppressors, they will forever be locked in a cycle of war and militia dominance.

The resulting security vacuum is what makes Afghanistan easy prey for terrorist groups, which is why the United States cannot afford to withdraw. It’s a vicious cycle.

The same conditions marked the Iraq war, which sucked away $1.7 trillion in U.S. funding. Thousands of U.S. troops died, while the Iraqi population did little to defend their own nation’s sovereignty. That’s what opened the door to Islamic State terrorists in 2014. Only after Iraqis unified and began fighting back did ISIS begin retreating and government sovereignty return.

That’s what victory looks like. That’s nation-building. It wouldn’t have happened without hard-nosed diplomacy and ongoing U.S. assistance, including air support and military advisers serving on the front lines under a strategy implemented by President Obama.

Trump publicly criticized Pakistan, demanding that it stop destabilizing Afghanistan and do more to eliminate terrorist safe havens. Trump has a point, but the Islamabad government feels that the tens of thousands of lives Pakistan has sacrificed in the anti-terrorism fight earn it the right to be respected as a partner, not berated as an underling. Trump must learn the art of diplomacy.

Likewise with his appeal for NATO to contribute more troops and funding for Afghanistan after spending months openly criticizing NATO and insulting its leaders. If this is how he plans to achieve victory in Afghanistan, a very long slog awaits.

— St. Louis Post-Dispatch