The U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan is imperiling the 3-decade global quest to eradicate polio. The Taliban, which now controls large swaths of the country, has blocked house-to-house polio vaccination in areas under its reign the past 3 years, putting up to 3 million children out of reach of the campaign. The Taliban may well wrest complete control from the Afghan government—which supports the eradication campaign—after U.S. forces are gone. But some inside and outside the Global Polio Eradication Initiative say a clear resolution to the conflict, regardless of who prevails, may actually aid eradication efforts. They hope the campaign will be able to work with the Taliban to keep vaccinations going if it consolidates power.

美国从阿富汗撤军正在危及长达 3 年的全球根除小儿麻痹症的努力。现在控制着该国大片地区的塔利班在过去 3 年中阻止了在其统治下的地区挨家挨户接种脊髓灰质炎疫苗，使多达 300 万儿童无法进行这项运动。在美军撤离后，塔利班很可能从支持根除行动的阿富汗政府手中夺取完全控制权。但全球根除脊髓灰质炎倡议内外的一些人表示，无论谁占上风，明确解决冲突实际上可能有助于根除工作。他们希望，如果塔利班巩固权力，该运动将能够与塔利班合作，继续进行疫苗接种。