US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan to have little impact, official says
U.S. Marines stand in formation during a ceremony in Helmand province, Afghanistan. The Pentagon is developing plans to withdraw up to half of the 14,000 American troops serving in Afghanistan, U.S. officials said, marking a sharp change in the Trump administration’s policy aimed at forcing the Taliban to the peace table after more than 17 years of war. (Massoud Hossaini/AP)
By: Amir Shah, The Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan — The withdrawal of half of the 14,000 U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan will have little impact on the fighting capacity of the Afghan National Security Forces, the spokesman for President Ashraf Ghani said Friday.
Haroon Chakansuri was responding to reports the Pentagon is developing plans to withdraw 7,000 American soldiers by the summer. He said Afghanistan’s military has been in charge of the country’s security since 2014 when more than 100,000 NATO troops withdrew.
Since then, U.S. forces have provided training and advice, assisting in military operations only when requested by Afghan troops.
However, the Taliban are stronger today than they have been since their ouster in 2001. They control or hold sway over nearly half the country, carrying out near daily attacks that mostly target Afghan security forces.
A Taliban official, who did not want to be identified because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the media, called the planned withdrawal a “positive step” that can aid efforts at a negotiated end to the fighting.
Since leading the multi-nation invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the U.S. has lost more than 2,400 soldiers and spent more than $900 billion in its longest war
First Syria, now Afghanistan. President Trump has directed the Pentagon to begin withdrawing U.S. troops from there as well, ending the 17-year deployment of American forces in-country.
More than 7,000 service members will begin returning from Afghanistan in coming months, per White House order. This comes shortly after Trump signaled plans to remove all U.S. forces from Syria, declaring that “We have won against ISIS.”
This and Syria are quite a Christmas present. Standing by for the obligatory howls of angst from IVAW and others of chattering class, who just a short while ago were protesting our military presence there.
The rest of the article may be viewed at: The Military Times
Category: Afghanistan, Foreign Policy, Terror War
Judging a foreign policy as positive because it makes some libtard’s head explode is not foreign policy at all. It’s just more of the same tiresome tribal politics. What if you woke up tomorrow and read a tweet that 8th Army and 2nd ID got told to redeploy from the pen, and 7th FLEET got pulled back to San Dog. Haha, Lars just shit himself because we did something half baked, based on an early morning tweet. Haha, that’s so funny, right? Not.
Just for arguments sake, the forces currently deployed to South Korea, or a large portion of them, may very well be coming home soon as a result of North Korea’s acquiescing to Trump’s demands on its nuclear capability. Your 7th Fleet returning to San Diego comparison doesn’t wash, either, as the Navy’s mission there is strategic in maintaining the freedom of navigation at sea, and as a check on China’s expansionism. Hardly on a par with 7,000 troops returning from A-Stan.
What would you recommend- keeping our forces there for another 17 years and untold amounts of blood and treasure?
You’re excellent at throwing rocks, W2. Any actual suggestions from you without a lot attitude would be welcome.
Have a Merry Christmas.
Who is acquiescing to whom?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/20/north-korea-us-kim-jong-un-trump-denuclearize-nuclear-threat
Even without nukes, the dPRK poses an existential threat to ROK just with their conventional artillery. China would be also be thrilled with us leaving the peninsula
WRT Afghanistan, we have been in an advise and assist role for quite a while. I’m glad to see that both the corrupt government and the Taliban approve.
Who knows, maybe Kim, Akhundza, and al Baghdadi are sick of all the war and violence and famine and will just let peace reign. Either way, we will have to be comfortable with Putin, Jinping, Assad, and others setting the agenda.
Look, it’s not that all of this is a bad idea per se- withdrawing could be part of a cogent and cohesive strategy in the region. The problem is that it’s clearly not part of the strategy Trump publishe (look up the National Security Strategy; it’s available online), and it is therefore creating a disjointed policy and catching our allies by surprise.
Doing via twitter makes it even worse
“he dPRK poses an existential threat to ROK just with their conventional artillery”
Not really. S. Korea is a bit longer than 30 miles, well out of range of NORK artillery unless the artillery displaces. If it does displace, NORK artillery and its ammunition is vulnerable to our air and artillery.
Trump was full of shit when he claimed he had solved the NK problem.
He gave up several bargaining chips, alienated and alarmed out SK allies and got nothing for it.
The North Koreans played him. Blew up a damaged test center that needed to be rebuilt with explosives set to be more Hollywood than doing any actual damage.
They have not stopped their Nuclear program and exclicitly said they won’t unlessbthe US dismantles our program and pulls troops out of South Korea.
Every expert on North Korea made it clear that there is no possible way the North’s Koreans will give up there Nuclear program and any claims they make that they did could never be verified so we would always have to assume they had nukes in our strategic planning.
Jeezus, give it a mudda-fuckin’ rest, willya?
So Trump gets a historic sit down with NK. The Koreas have been engaging each other in ways that they haven’t for generations. The peninsula is finally looking at really, finally ending the war.
All that’s bad because Trump.
Meanwhile, a few miles west. President Redline gives billions of dollars in cash to Iran. Then makes a horrible “deal” in which Iran is reopened to the world market with reduced sanctions. This clearly hasn’t stopped their nuclear and ballistic missile aspirations.
And that’s good, because Redline got a Nobel Peace Prize for moving into the White House.
EAFBOD. 12-18 months ago, you (leftists, collectively) swore up and down Trump would get us into a nuclear war.
When’s the last time NDtBF launched a missile, pray tell?
How do you get through your day being so wrong? You’re that guy on the test who got 15 points deducted on a 10 point question, and when you asked the professor why, he replied, “Because you were so wrong.”
Sounds like someone like the taste of hilldabeasts asshole, fuck off troll.
“Trump was full of shit…”
Just like every other politician. Somehow I just can’t seem to work up too much outrage over lying politicians anymore. I shall leave that to you young folk.
PS
By the way, you could have used ‘is’ instead of ‘was’.
“Every expert on North Korea made it cle…they had nukes in our strategic planning.”
Exactly what we conservatives have been saying since the Clinton administration. Welcome aboard.
At least he tried something new, something more than the same tired old “You make promises and we’ll give you money and fuel oil” approach. What tangible ‘bargaining chips’, exactly, did Trump give up?
I’d rather kill them there in Afghanistan than in a caravan. And if you don’t think 2nd ID is a strategic force in Asia, can you please share the pakalolo you’re currently smoking?
Also, I hope you and all the others that keep this blog going have a very Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.
2nd ID in-country is ~10K US troops strong, with ~1100 South Korean augmenters. I don’t envy them their mission.
I’ve flown with the ROKN in their P-3s and found their Navy Aircrews and Maintainers to be first rate; I can only extrapolate the same for the rest of their military.
That being said, the 2nd ID is still a possible bargaining chip to ease or end North Korean’s hostile intentions, strategic or not.
Unsure what exactly pakalolo is, but I can guess; as a Fed I’m under the same urinalysis screening requirements as you. I’ll pass on that but gladly share some fine single barrel bourbon.
Thanks for the props on the blog, means a lot to all of us.
Blanton’s exports a “Straight from the Barrel” bourbon which I try to buy whenever it’s available in Nihon. Last bottle I had was 125.7 proof. No finer product had ever been imbibed by this squid. Until you can offer that, I’ll take your pakalolo instead.
Oh, yeah, just wondering why you aren’t clamoring for the redeployment of the 5,600 guys on the border with nothing to do? At least in Syria, A-Stan and Korea there is a mission.
This directed at me, and I presume you are referring to the troops deployed along the US-Mexican border? I’d rather have those troops home with friends and family tonight, and not needed to be a presence on our secured, monitored and enforced Southern border.
” At least in Syria, A-Stan and Korea there is a mission.”
And that mission is……? And when will it be submitted to the approval of the American public?
Oh, right Trump did that when he ran on the pledge to remove US troops from endless, pointless, wars in Syria, etc.
Given the liberal foreign policy track record, if it makes their heads explode, it’s a move generally in the right direction.
I guess time will tell if we kicked the crap out of ISIS or not, now won’t it? We kicked the crap out of Al Qeada in Iraq too. They seemed to pop back up again. Keep drinking that kool aid though.
Seems to me if the Obama administration had not royally screwed the pooch and killed the SOFA with Iraq, the ISIS problem wouldn’t have been nearly as bad as it was?
Or maybe not supporting the Muslim Brotherhood? Think that might have made a difference?
I could go on, but you get the idea.
I do get the idea and that SOFA thing was as boneheaded a move as this is.
Sorry, but those who want to continue our 17 year adventure in Afghanistan and spread the fun to innumerable other countries have already drunk it all.
Maybe, but it ain’t that Jim Jones kool aid you’re drinking.
And yes, I am all for killing them there instead of in a caravan. Every jihadi that gets greased by a JDAM in Syria or by an A-10 in A-Stan is much better than the FBI running around trying to send them to hell while they’re in CONUS.
i wonder if this has anything to do with his domestic policies. dem give and take type stuff. it just seems odd to me that he would do such a 180 on the subject… he is also getting coal from me this christmas for shitcanning Mad Dog early as well as the bump stock ban
As I and others have already pointed out Trump did not do a 180. Mattis & friends just decided to ignore the policy he ran for election on and reaffirmed to them in April.
Waiting for Commissar (Social Justice Warrior and Geopolitical Know-it-all) to show up and announce to the world his usual ponticfications and postulations about this latest move…in 3… 2… 1
Done. See below.
Thought I smelled something foul.
Anyone remember Cindy Sheehan?
She disappeared from the fake legacy media during the obama regime after being on the news nearly every night while Bush was around.
She should be a huge DJT supporter now…
Right?
She’s far past her “use by” date. Recycled as David “I’m a survivor” Hogg.
Well, no, because two things can be true at once.
You can be an isolationist/pacifist like Sheehan, and therefore support Trumps half baked isolationist/pacifist foreign policy, AND at the same time think his domestic policies are short-sighted.
We had no discernable strategy in Syria other than arming potential terrorist who were arguably less terroristic than ISIS. Assad, one of the most secular leaders in the ME is joined by Russia and Iran in fighting ISIS and the Free Syrian Army (which is also fighting ISIS) while we support the Free Syrian Army which is fighting Assad and Russia and Iran all the while sort off fighting ISIS. Then comes the Kurds which are fighting ISIS and Turkey which is also fighting ISIS and the Kurds who we have been supporting…..okay I admit I am confused but why are we in Syria again?
The ME has been fighting for thousands of years and yes ISIS or a derivitive will pop up again but its mostly a ME or European issue and its time to let them deal with it. Redeploy and start facing the Chinese threat.
Trump campaigned on doing what he announced and no one should be surprized by this.
Jeeze I need more coffee, I meant to post this on the Putin Syria thread! Its basically true for A-Stan though. Time to GTFO and leave them to thier fate.
I am not sure we are accomplishing anything of lasting impact in Afghanistan.
Half the troop strength will accomplish approximately half of nothing.
I am not saying nothing is being accomplished. All I am saying is that the gains made require constant American blood and treasure to maintain and there is no real evidence the Afghan government has the institutional capacity to hold the gains without a constant flow of American blood and treasure.
The Afghan government is systemically corrupt and has made zero progress in addressing its terminal cancer of greed and incompetence among officials.
That is not going to change no matter how many Taliban are killed and American lives lost in the process.
A decent argument could be made to pull out all troops and just have CT and DA teams with a BCT designed to provide light infantry support to the direct action missions stationed in a nearby host country such as Kyrgyzstan to assist the Afghan security forces in hitting high value targets while we leave the rest of the fight to the Afghans.
We could establish a training academy for Afghan officers and NCOs, outside Afghanistan, to provide the Afghans with constant flow of cadre to run their own training at the unit level on the ground in Afghanistan.
A measured, thoughtful comment. I knew you could do it, Cthulhu. Hell, I even agree with most of it.
I’m right there with ya, AW1. I’m gonna accept it as a Christmas miracle
IT’S A FESTIVUS MIRACLE!!!!
Careful. He bites.
Given how quickly most Afghans will change sides, even in a battle, I truly wonder if that Country can ever be civilized? Afghanistan has been called “The Graveyard of Empires”, just ask the British and Russians.
Considering its major export is opium-based (rapidly shifting to meth, ain’t progress grand?) and one’s allegiance is to his clan, “civilized” as we understand it seems a far stretch.
“We could establish a training academy for Afghan officers and NCOs, outside Afghanistan…” I’d recommend sending them your way but they would become too radicalized.
The comment is the first reasonable thing you have ever posted, but you remain a commie and a horse’s ass.
Accept it as a bit of Christmas cheer, like a new pony. Ignore the pony shit. For now.
They already hate America, so sending them to Cthulu would be redundant.
I stand corrected.
But I would also have added the problem is regional in nature, not just Afghanistan.
Between Iran providing weapons and Pakistan providing shelter (if not actual intel and logistical support via the ISI), the Taliban knew they could bide their time.
They (or their predecessors) have been doing it for 3000 years.
Bide, not hide.
Fucking fat thumbs.
So the Taliban is organized enough that they have and “official, who did not want to be identified because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the media”?
This is either another case of a media elite citing a made up source or our 17 years has been a huge waste.
Still don’t understand whey we’re not dropping BUFFs full of napalm on all those poppy fields.
I could explain it but most would just dismiss it as too long to read or me being a know it all.
However, there are good reasons that whenever we start focusing on eradication we realize it is counterproductive and shift the focus. Then some new battle space commander comes in and has to relearn the lesson.
Poppy eradication
-poppy- eradication
In the -Himalayas-…
Of the -Afghanis- …
This is straightforward. It requires two primary tools:
1) a persistent biological antagonist that will destroy greater than 90% of targeted poppy crops. The agent must be persistent and self-replicating
2) a persistent high-lethality chemical weapon to treat poppy cropland to prevent interference with the bio agent, or re-seeding after attempts to cauterize the bio-pest.
In short, one must effectively implement two-species -genocide- on poppy and poppy farmers.
Because -nothing- short of that will make a -dent- in Afghani poppy agriculture.
And since the chance of finding the stomach for -that- in the USA is exactly zero, it is a fools errand to even go there.
Not. Gonna. Stop.
Indeed this is right and what I’ve said for years, burn it to the ground and salt the fucking earth so nothing grows…not in just the poppy fields but anywhere in the country…let them all fucking starve.
Send a message that says if you harbor people who will fly planes into our building we’ll come through and leave a barren wasteland of death and starvation for the survivors our wake.
Oderint Dum Metuant (Let Them Hate, So Long As They Fear) sends a strong message regarding the price of trifling with us.
IVAW = Losers.
I am glad we are getting out of the forever wars in Syria and Afghanistan.
We should continue to arm our former allies, the Syrian Kurds and they can defend themselves against the inevitable Turkish Army attack.
The inept and corrupt Afghan government will fall after we leave whether that is in two weeks or another two decades.
I concur! After doing a tour there myself I’ve been thoroughly convinced that most of the denizens there CANNOT be civilized or united as a Country.