If winter arrives and insurgents are still capable of mounting major attacks and intimidating the local population, it could further chill Western governments’ already diminishing appetite for a long-term presence in Afghanistan. “To strike at the heart of the insurgency, strike at the historical and spiritual home of the Taliban movement sends a very clear message — with the resources we have, we are on the offensive,” said Dakota Wood, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. “If we end up having to pull back, or are not successful, there will have to be a serious review of Western aims and resources in Afghanistan.”