The US has used its diplomatic and military muscle to try to pull off a successful vote in a nation expected to define the foreign policy of President Barack Obama.
Fast-forward to today: the Obama administration is taking an arms-length approach to Afghanistan's April 5th elections, reports Reuters.
US soldiers are no longer taking the lead in safeguarding voters across the central Asian country. US officials have steered clear of appearing to pick sides among rival candidates.
The about-turn reflects Afghanistan's shrinking role in the foreign policy priorities of the Obama administration, as senior officials turn toward the conflict in Syria, Middle East peace talks, and the crisis in Ukraine.
"The approach is very different than it was in 2009," said Shamila Chaudhary, a former official who worked on Afghanistan and Pakistan at the White House and State Department earlier in the Obama administration. "This is now a country where we can have a minimalist kind of engagement," Chaudhary added.