Thursday, April 25, 2013

More Doubts On the Afghan Army

Afghan Army Bruised by Long Battle -- Wall Street Journal

KABUL—New details about an ambush on Afghan troops in March and the army's stumbles in the monthlong battle that followed illustrate the challenges Afghanistan faces in taking over security around the country.

Afghan and coalition officials said recently concluded operations in the usually peaceful northeastern province of Badakhshan laid bare a range of problems faced by Afghan security forces throughout the country, from lack of advance planning and communication to inadequate supply and logistics.

What began as a simple resupply mission turned into a prolonged fight to reclaim a remote mountainous district. It also illustrated Afghanistan's reliance on coalition air power: In the final week of the operation, the Afghans had to call for backup from North Atlantic Treaty Organization aircraft—support that won't be available once foreign forces withdraw by the end of next year.

Read more
....

My Comment: Air support makes a huge difference in combat zones like Afghanistan. But this is the Afghan Achilles heel .... they lack such support.

No comments: