US Defense Still Trapped in Post-9/11 Forever Wars
Twenty-five years after 2,977 people were killed in the September 11 attacks, Americans are divided over whether the wars that followed made the country safer or weaker.
- Nearly 3,000 people died on September 11; thousands more were injured.
- Total U.S. military spending over the past 25 years exceeded $21 trillion in 2024 dollars.
- More than 100 million Americans alive today were not yet born on September 11, 2001.
- Article 5 of the NATO charter was invoked for the first and only time after the attacks.
Why it matters: The post-9/11 wars reshaped U.S. foreign policy and redirected vast public resources for a generation. Analysts now ask whether that spending left the country more or less secure.
- Walter Russell Mead, writing for the Council on Foreign Relations podcast, argued that U.S. aims in the war on terrorism far exceeded what American power could achieve.
- The Independent's Sam Kiley argues Russia is now exploiting the strategic damage done by two decades of costly conflict.
How 26 sources split on this story
Where they split: The core dispute is whether the post-9/11 wars represent a broadly successful defense of U.S. security or a strategic overreach that weakened the country and empowered adversaries.
Center coverage, 8 sources: The center frames the anniversary as an occasion for sober lessons: the wars were shaped by legitimate fear and real intelligence failures, but overconfidence in American power and the limits of military force explain why no decisive victory came.
Asia Times1d25 years of war was the exact wrong response to 9/11 - Asia Times
Japan Times8hHow 9/11 changed Japan’s approach to security forever
Jerusalem Post50mUN monitoring findings point to continued al-Qaeda activity 25 years after 9/11 - analysis
BBC News11h9/11 anniversary: How the lessons of the attacks are still being learnt
Christian Science Monitor2dThe ‘Clash’ that never was: How Sept. 11 attacks still shape global relations
Newsweek15h"You are the worst civilization": Bin Laden’s letter to America
Reuters1dUS defense is precariously stuck on 9/11Left coverage, 9 sources: The left frames the post-9/11 wars as a cascading strategic catastrophe that caused mass civilian harm abroad, hollowed out domestic investment, and handed rivals like Russia an opening to challenge U.S. global standing.
The Independent6hThe MI5 chief is right: we must all take threats to our security more seriously
The Guardian4hAfter 9/11, I lived through Australia’s long war in Afghanistan. There are lessons the world must learn | Shadi Khan SaifDNDemocracy Now!21h“Reign of Terror: How the 9/11 Era Destabilized America and Produced Trump”: Spencer AckermanJacJacobin0mDonald Trump’s Saudi Nuclear Deal Makes No Sense
Los Angeles Times1dColumn: Instead of learning, Trump doubles down on Bush's post-9/11 mistakesTBGThe Boston Globe18hOpinion | The 9/11 threat we’re ignoringTPIThe Philadelphia Inquirer13hAmerica lost its way after 9/11. We don’t have to stay on the wrong path.TruTruthout14hTrump Renews Post-9/11 National Emergency for 25th Year in a RowWMWashington Monthly1h25 Years After 9/11, What Have We Learned?Right coverage, 9 sources: The right frames the war on terror as a measurable success — no comparable attack has occurred on U.S. soil in 25 years — and warns against narratives that treat the response as a failure or cast doubt on American values and resolve.
Wall Street Journal7hSept. 11 Changed the World Order. But Not for the Reason We May Think.
New York Post14h25 years after the horrific 9/11 attacks, America's collective memory is fading — but the lessons learned mustn't be forgotten
Washington Free Beacon1hThe Rocky Path to Prosecuting Terror
American Greatness3hName the Enemy: The 25th Anniversary of 9/11 Still Demands It › American Greatness
Daily Mail10hAfghanistan war veterans say their friends 'died for nothing' as they speak out 25 years after 9/11
Just the News1dTwenty-five years after 9/11: how the attacks defined every president since
The American Spectator5hThe Lesson of 9/11
The Blaze2hOsama bin Laden is dead. His strategy is still working.
The Federalist23h9/11 Was The Beginning Of A Religious War That We LostWhat’s next: No major policy response is currently scheduled, but the anniversary debate is shaping discussion of U.S. counterterrorism and great-power competition going forward.
- CFR's James M. Lindsay notes the terrorist threat has become more ideologically diverse and technologically advanced since 2001.
- Would a more limited military response after 9/11 have produced better outcomes, or was broad action unavoidable given the political climate at the time?
- Has the global terrorism threat grown or shrunk as a result of U.S. post-9/11 policy choices?
- To what extent have China and Russia materially benefited from U.S. strategic focus on counterterrorism over the past 25 years?