Monday, December 8, 2014

A Look At The U.S. Exit Strategy From Afghanistan

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel speaks to American troops during a visit to Forward Operating Base Gamberi on Dec. 7, 2014. (Mark Wilson/Reuters)

Hagel Visits Afghan Outpost Seen as U.S. Way Out of Longest War -- David Lerman, Bloomberg

The outgoing Secretary of Defense called the base "a model" that the U.S. can use in its exit strategy from the war torn country.

Dec. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The Pentagon is counting on a remote outpost in eastern Afghanistan to help lead the way out of America’s longest war.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel took a 30-minute helicopter ride from the capital city of Kabul yesterday to visit a base that he says will provide the blueprint for an orderly U.S. exit from Afghanistan.

Forward Operating Base Gamberi, not far from Jalalabad in Laghman province, is home to the Train, Advise, Assist Command for the country’s eastern region. Its mission: to make Afghan forces fully capable of providing security as the U.S. withdraws. About 800 U.S. troops work at the base with Polish counterparts in training Afghan forces.

Read more ....

Update: In Afghanistan, a tight timeline for new U.S.-led training and support mission -- Washington Post

My Comment: After 13 years of war and a deployment of over 100,000 US and NATO soldiers .... I fail to see how this "new focus" with limited resources and almost no boots on the ground will change the direction of this war .... but that is what they are saying back in Washington. My prediction .... this is going to fail miserably because the Afghan army simply does not have the resources to defeat the Taliban and their supply networks in much of the country.

1 comment:

James said...

I can feel the love at this briefing.