– U.S DIVIDED OVER AFGHAN WAR

Published September 22, 2009

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Amide the leek of Gen. Stanley McChrystal report, issued on 08/30/2009, in which he made his assessment that the US mission in Afghanistan will “likely result in failure” unless troops are increased within a year.

The main problem General Stanley McChrystal is facing in Afghanistan is the coordination, integration and support to the Taliban in Afghanistan from various elements in Pakistan which includes the Tehrik-e-Taleban, The Pakistani notorious intelligence apparatus, ISI, and a conglomerate of Islamic organization in Pakistan (see also – PK Two Heads).

The report said “Afghanistan’s insurgency is clearly supported from Pakistan” – a view many others seem to agree with.

The shura council of the Taliban in Quetta, in southwest Pakistan, led by Mullah Omar, is the biggest force fighting the NATO-led troops in Afghanistan, McChrystal said.

Then there’s the Haqqani network – run by Jalaluddin Haqqani – which is believed to have close ties to Al Qaeda and which has North Waziristan as its main base. Gen. McChrystal said its resources come from Pakistan and other Arab Gulf Emirates networks.

Finally, the report said, there is the Hezbi-I-Islam, run by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a veteran guerrilla from the Soviet war in the 1980s.

It seems that the political support for the war in Afghanistan, a key voting issue in the 2008 presidential election, is draining out and the public support in USA for the war is shrinking fast (see also – Mullen Assessment). The war, which was in the USA consensus, is supported by a slim majority of just about as many support it (46%), as oppose it (45%), according to a FOX News poll released on Monday 09/21/2009.

More than 30,000 extra US troops have been sent to Afghanistan since 05/2009 – almost doubling the US contingent. The number of US troops in Afghanistan is already set to rise to 68,000 by the end of the year. But Gen. Stanley McChrystal is asking for at least 30,000 more troops in order to contain the Taliban in Afghanistan.

The increase in troop numbers would provide security for the Afghan people and create a space in which good governance can take root, Gen McChrystal argues.

The report is the last in continuous pessimistic reports about the war in Afghanistan, which generally suggest the last 8 years were basically frittered away and no substantial progress was made in tackling the Taliban or building a stable regime, despite the enormous coast.

It is most likely that the Taliban and the Afghan society have a sense of the growing confusion of USA and NATO-ISAF about the war in Afghanistan and it will boost their self confidence of the final outcome of the war.

* Related topics –

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09/2009 -AFGHAN CONFUSION

08/2009 -THE AFGHAN SHOW

10/2008 -CAN’T WIN THE AFGHAN WAR

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