Afghans blast French plan to withdraw troops early

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Afghans blast French plan to withdraw troops early

By KAY JOHNSON, Associated Press – 32 minutes ago

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — France's plans to withdraw its combat troops from Afghanistan a year early drew harsh words Saturday in the Afghan capital, with critics accusing French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting domestic politics ahead of Afghans' safety.

A wider proposal by Sarkozy for NATO to hand over all security to Afghans by the end of next year also came under fire, with one Afghan lawmaker saying it would be "a big mistake" that would leave security forces unprepared to fight the Taliban insurgency and threaten a new descent into violence in the 10-year-old war.

Sarkozy's decision, which came a week after four French troops were shot dead by an Afghan army trainee suspected of being a Taliban infiltrator, raises new questions about the unity of the U.S.-led military coalition.

It also reopens the debate over whether setting a deadline for troop withdrawals will allow the Taliban to run out the clock and seize more territory once foreign forces are gone.

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Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iC2QsosWlYHKG9pS808Szr0pOJcA?docId=5e28b05f50ce45b1a155f8ad1084c698

[krispos42]

1. If the Afghans can't get over their own corruption and tribalism...

...to get their country ready for independence, then NATO should leave.

Let the country Balkanize.

And if we legalized opiates, that would destroy the illegal heroin trade, and thus deprive the Taliban and Al Qaeda of vital funds and international trafficking ties they need to carry out their plans.

The mini-nations would go on their traditional ways, without much in the way of modern culture or technology, and be there leaving everybody alone.


If we wanted to help the oppressed people of the mini-nations free themselves (gays, women, etc.) we would have an automatic-immigration policy for anybody that could get to the US Embassy and didn't have a contagious disease.