
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s brief public address earlier Saturday was a clear holding statement to try and reassure the people who still support his government that something is being done.
When he said he would consult with elders and other leaders both inside and outside of the country, he may have been canvassing opinion.
He could be testing the waters to gauge appetite for him to either step down or to explore some kind of power-sharing deal with the Taliban before the group moves on Kabul. Any fighting in the Afghan capital would be a protracted conflict in all probability.
The government will be looking to learn lessons after seeing local allies join with the Taliban, like Afghan warlord Ismail Khan. Khan appears to have struck a deal with the militants after the group claimed Herat, in an attempt to ensure his own safety and even his own future political position.
Khan presided over the city during the last Taliban administration more than 20 years ago, and in the years since, he has served as Herat's governor and an Afghan government minister. But on Friday, he was seen in a Taliban video alongside militants.
His surrender caused a whole Afghan Army Corp to change sides, or at least lay down their weapons.
If that’s the pattern of behavior we might see in Kabul, then there could be a peaceful resolution. But it may be one that many in the West would ultimately be uncomfortable with, because it would give the Taliban the whip-hand in any future political dispensations in Afghanistan.