US Troops Could Remain In Afghanistan For Decades

[Purveyor]

Source: The Nation PK

Thousands of US troops could remain in Afghanistan for decades to come, despite Washington's plan to pull the majority of soldiers out by early 2017, US military commanders reportedly suggest.

The revelation comes amid concerns about the Afghan government's vulnerability.

“What we’ve learned is that you can’t really leave,” a senior Pentagon official told the Washington Post on condition of anonymity. “The local forces need air support, intelligence and help with logistics. They are not going to be ready in three years or five years. You have to be there for a very long time.”

Senior US commanders expressed surprise at Al-Qaeda's resilience in Afghanistan, as well as the Taliban's continued seizure of large areas of contested territory.



Read more: http://nation.com.pk/international/28-Jan-2016/us-troops-could-remain-in-afghanistan-for-decades-report

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U.S. Sees Lasting Role For Troops In Afghanistan

Greg Jaffe and Missy Ryan, Washington Post
Posted: Wednesday, January 27, 2016

WASHINGTON - Top U.S. military commanders, who only a few months ago were planning to pull the last American troops out of Afghanistan by year's end, are now quietly talking about an American commitment that could keep thousands of troops in the country for decades.

The shift in mindset, made possible by President Obama's decision last fall to cancel withdrawal plans, reflects the Afghan government's vulnerability to continued militant assault and concern that terror groups like al-Qaeda continue to build training camps whose effect could be felt far beyond the region, said senior military officials.

The military outlook mirrors arguments made by many Republican and Democratic foreign policy advisers, looking beyond the Obama presidency, for a significant long-term American presence.

"This is not a region you want to abandon," said Michele Flournoy, a former Pentagon official who would likely be considered a top candidate for secretary of defense in a Hillary Clinton administration. "So the question is what do we need going forward given our interests?"

American commanders have been surprised by al-Qaeda's resilience and ability to find a haven in the Afghan countryside as well as the Taliban's repeated seizure of large tracts of contested territory.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly
/news/20160127_U_S__sees_lasting_role_for_troops_in_Afghanistan.html#ctHEp5ljuv7BWJ5e.99

[Xipe Totec]

1. Hopefully, they'll rotate.

But yea. Way too long to keep troops on that godforsaken anus of the world.

[hibbing]

2. MIC

Even after the Republican president rebuilds our underfunded military. Won't that big bad 700 ship navy they all have erections about wrap that whole war up in a few weeks?


Peace

[Agnosticsherbet]

3. We are still in Germany...

[TwilightGardener]

4. We're still fighting the Nazis?

They can take their forever war and shove it up their asses.

[former9thward]

9. Are the Germans trying to kill us?

We were in Germany as a defense of western Europe against the Soviets. We are now there as an economic benefit for Germany.

[elias49]

13. 50,000 strong. Hard to believe.

[uhnope]

5. what's the alternative--Letting the Taliban take over and become ISIS 2?

2,000 troops is "thousands", btw.
The Nation lol.
The world is pretty much united in its opposition to the Taliban and united in gratitude to the US for fighting this fight it doesn't want to do.
Not a good situation, but whenever those who think the US is automatically wrong always--the propagandists active on DU-- have a better solution, feel free.

[Kelvin Mace]

6. And where did the Taliban come from?

Seems they got their start with U.S. backing to act as proxies against the Soviets.

As long as we screw with other people, we will have eternal war.

[TwilightGardener]

7. The Taliban are a fact of life there. We're not defeating them.

We're just hanging around, enforcing a stalemate, like the Koreas but with more of our guys getting blown up and zero strategic value to our bases.

[Fast Walker 52]

17. besides, there are all those awesome minerals in the ground, and excellent opium crops

[Purveyor]

10. I knew you couldn't keep me on ignore forever...

[nyabingi]

23. Is there an American military adventure you don't think is right?

I'm guessing you thought the invasion and destruction of Iraq was a good thing too right?

There's a good reason people like you become amnesiacs when it comes to history, because you get to conveniently forget that before the US and Pakistan began supporting the Taliban (and what became al-Qa'ida) against the Soviets, Afghanistan had a government that allowed women freedoms, it was secular, and more people-centered. They were backed by the Soviets so we didn't like them so we decided to replace them with religious fanatics who force women to wear burqas. Our backing of the Taliban is well-established history at this point and not really a point of contention.

The solution? Leave. It is up to the people of Afghanistan to eventually determine who their leaders are (be they the Taliban or someone else). Permanent military occupation is only good for Lockheed Martin, Halliburton and the energy companies who desire to build pipelines and other oil infrastructure in Afghanistan. Our soldiers have only ever been there to protect the economic interests of these corporations, not ours.

I can't believe someone on a "Democratic" site is defending military occupation.

[elleng]

8. True, which I thought might happen, when we first went in.

[PSPS]

11. That's why they say that Afghanistan is "where empires go to die."

[MynameisBlarney]

12. Great...

pretty sure most here saw this one coming.

[valerief]

14. As long as opium is there, we'll be there.

[Des Moines De Mon]

15. Who'd of seen THAT coming?

[rug]

16. Complete and utter bullshit.

[Fast Walker 52]

19. please summarize your point

... but it looks like this was from a younger time in his presidency and I'm guessing he's saying we won't be in Afghanistan for fucking forever.

[rug]

21. The speech is from December 1, 2009.

The same year he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize.

We will not be in Afghanistan for fucking forever. We will be in Afghanistan for fucking decades.

This speech provided the ideological rationale for that as well as putting the mechanics of it into place.

It is complete and utter bullshit.

[Fast Walker 52]

22. what is bullshit?

that we will be there for decades, or putting the mechanics in place, or the war itself?

I would say the last thing, personally.

[rug]

25. All of it.

Being there. Adding to it. Providing ideological cover for it.

[Fast Walker 52]

26. I can't argue with that!

[Fast Walker 52]

18. so it's basically a new US terrritory?

So freaking insane. War is a fucking racket.

[sulphurdunn]

20. US troops will come home from

Afghanistan when they leave Germany and South Korea.

[nyabingi]

24. The US has troops in the majority of the countries

on this planet, and I hope people aren't stupid enough to believe that this is the case because they're protecting our "freedom" and "liberty". Once we go in, we never leave.