How the “Grand Chessboard” Led to US Checkmate in Afghanistan. Max Parry Nearly as suspenseful as the Taliban’s meteoric return to power after the final withdrawal of American armed forces from Afghanistan is the uncertainty over what will come next amid the fallout.
Many have predicted that Russia and China will step in to fill the power vacuum and convince the facelift Taliban to negotiate a power-sharing agreement in exchange for political and economic support, while others fear a descent into civil war is inevitable. Although Moscow and Beijing potentially stand to gain from the humiliating US retreat by pushing for an inclusive government in Kabul, the rebranded Pashtun-based group must first be removed as a designated terrorist organization. U.S. officials misled the public about the war in Afghanistan, confidential documents reveal - Washington Post.
War in Afghanistan turns 16, earns driver's license. What the US Military (Still) Doesn’t Understand About Afghanistan. EDITOR’S NOTE: This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com.
To stay on top of important articles like these, sign up to receive the latest updates from TomDispatch.com. Here we go again! Years after most Americans forgot about the longest war this country ever fought, American soldiers are again being deployed to Afghanistan. For almost 16 years now, at the command of three presidents and a sadly forgettable succession of generals, they have gone round and round like so many motorists trapped on a rotary with no exit. This time their numbers are officially secret, although variously reported to be 3,500 or 4,000, with another 6,000-plus to follow, and unknown numbers after that.
Afghanistan says it has endured enough freedom. I fought for nothing: Staggering incompetence, egregious corruption & America’s doomed war in Afghanistan. I’ve been waiting for the fall of Kunduz.
Not Kunduz, specifically, but the fall of a town in Afghanistan of some size and importance. Afghanistan: The Making of a Narco State. Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan is named for the wide river that runs through its provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, a low-slung city of shrubby roundabouts and glass-fronted market blocks.
Afghanistan: A Look Back On America's Longest War. U.S. Formally Ends War In Afghanistan. KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The United States and NATO formally ended their war in Afghanistan on Sunday with a ceremony at their military headquarters in Kabul as the insurgency they fought for 13 years remains as ferocious and deadly as at any time since the 2001 invasion that unseated the Taliban regime following the Sept. 11 attacks.
The symbolic ceremony marked the end of the U.S. -led International Security Assistance Force, which will transition to a supporting role with 13,500 soldiers, most of them American, starting Jan. 1. General Indifference Assumes Command Of Afghan War Effort. KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – In a move sure to go unnoticed by basically everyone, U.S.
Army Gen. John Indifference took the reins of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force from Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford in a change of command ceremony this morning. “I’d like to say it’s an honor, but the truth is I could generally give a shit,” the generally indifferent Gen. Indifference told an audience of bored but nodding military elites. The apathetic leader’s appointment follows a quiet fall from grace for predecessor Dunford, who sources say was thought to be generally too motivated for the task at hand; this summer, Dunford sparked controversy with the Pentagon by constantly spouting off in the media about mission success, hope for Afghanistan’s future, and all kinds of other silly shit.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do still, but lets not set the bar too high,” Indifference said, signaling his clearer alignment with Washington’s strategic intent. Pentagon Mandates Suicide Prevention Briefings For Afghan Troops. BAGRAM AIR FORCE BASE — Suicide prevention has become a major Pentagon initiative as the U.S. military has struggled with the issue in recent years, and now officials say they will be including Afghan forces also fighting the epidemic.
“The recent rash of attacks on Western troops by members of the Afghan forces, known as ‘Green-on-Blue’ attacks, are a cry for help,” said Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. So far this year, at least 30 Afghan soldiers and police officers have committed suicide by attacking U.S. and NATO troops. In a press conference at the Pentagon, Dempsey told reporters that most of the alleged attacks were Afghans committing “suicide-by-soldier.” “These poor souls are crying for help. White House Closes Afghan Massacre Inquiry, Will Release No Details. Awkwardness Ensues As Taliban & US Outsource Operations To Afghans. A formation of Afghan Army soldiers stand in formation before being dismissed to support the U.S.
Army and Taliban forces. KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN — Controversy engulfed both U.S. Cental Command (CENTCOM) and the Taliban on Monday, when both were revealed to be outsourcing combat operations to the Afghan National Army (ANA). What Went Wrong in Afghanistan? Afghanistan: Manufacturing the American Legacy. “A decade ago, playing music could get you maimed in Afghanistan.
Today, a youth ensemble is traveling to the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall. And it even includes girls.” Thus reads the sub-heading of a Washington Post story of February 3 about an orchestra of 48 Afghan young people who attended music school in a country where the Taliban have tried to silence both women and music. The surge in ‘insider’ attacks in Afghanistan. Taliban Raid on NATO Base Inflicted Severe Damage. While other attacks have caused greater loss of life, the assault late Friday at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, one of the largest and best-defended posts in Afghanistan, was troubling to because the attackers were able to penetrate the base, killing two Marines and causing more than $200 million in damage.
“We’re saying it’s a very sophisticated attack,” said a military official here. In Afghanistan, Hitting Pause on Local Police Training. Most Americans See Afghan War as Not Reducing Threat of Terrorism. Most Americans See Afghan War as Not Reducing Threat of Terrorism August 26, 2012 Originally published August 30, 2012 Most Support Obama's Plan for Withdrawal Digest of US Opinion on Violent ConflictPublic Opinion on Global Issues homepage.