Conway doubts timetable withdrawal in Afghanistan

The retiring former commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. James Conway speaks his mind to USAToday about the timetable withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan days before his retirement ceremony;

In an interview before his retirement Friday, Gen. James Conway said troops may be able to be pulled from elsewhere in Afghanistan by the deadline. The majority of U.S. forces engaged in a troop surge ordered by Obama are fighting in the south.

“Counterinsurgencies just take time,” Conway said. “I hope the focus is not … time constraints as much as it is the will to win.”

The media, as well as VetsVoice, like to point out the successes along the Pakistan border using improved intelligence and drone strikes, but Conway says the real battle is in the south of Afghanistan;

Conway acknowledged that the centerpiece of the Helmand campaign, an offensive in Marjah, a former Taliban stronghold, has not gone as anticipated. Marines and Afghan forces drove out Taliban forces in a February assault but efforts to build an effective local government have faltered.

“It was touted as government in a box,” Conway said. “It was going to be coming in to rapidly expand and start doing things for the population to gain their allegiance. And that just didn’t happen.”

Apparently, it’s easier to mount a propaganda campaign along the Pakistan border than it is to mount combat operations and train foreign troops in the country you’re trying to secure. Don’t get me wrong, it’s good that numerous Taliban and al Qaeda leaders have been planted in the mountains of the mountainous border, but assets that could be used in Marjah are drawn from the actual battle to write a few happy headlines.

Category: Barack Obama/Joe Biden, Military issues, Terror War