The bodies of 20 commandos were lined up last year outside the governor’s office in Sang-e-Masha, in Afghanistan’s Ghazni Province. Their company was almost destroyed fighting the Taliban.CreditJim Huylebroek for The New York Times
New York Times: As U.S. Nears a Pullout Deal, Afghan Army Is on the Defensive
KABUL, Afghanistan — As the United States appears to be nearing a deal with the Taliban on pulling its troops from Afghanistan, the country’s security forces are in their worst state in years — almost completely on the defensive in much of the country, according to local military commanders and civilian officials.
Afghan commanders vowed last year to take the offensive, rather than go on fighting a static “checkpoint war.” But in most major battlegrounds, the bulk of the regular Afghan forces are still holed up in fortified bases and outposts. Most offensive operations have been left to small numbers of Afghan and American Special Operations soldiers, backed by both countries’ air forces.
The woeful state of the regular Afghan forces has been widely seen as giving the Taliban a valuable edge in its negotiations with the United States, which have gone on for eight rounds in Doha, Qatar, and are believed to be near a conclusion. An announcement could come as early as Tuesday but also may be delayed, perhaps for weeks.
An analysis of more than 2,300 combat deaths of government forces, compiled in daily casualty reports by The New York Times from January through July, found that more than 87 percent occurred during Taliban attacks on bases, checkpoints or command centers. These numbers indicate that the Taliban can attack many such bases almost at will.
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WNU Editor: Another sobering report on the Afghan war.
4 comments:
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I don't think there's any hope of Afghanistan ever emerging out its self-imposed dark age. The predilections of any foreseeable native leadership are theocratic tyranny. You should see pictures of Kabul from the early 1970's. Its a totally different place than compared to the present. No way to get back to that state, but the goal should be to where Afghans can live in peace and for the country not to become a massive Islamic terrorist training camp. And even that's a stretch.
The goal for us in "the west" should be to advance into the space as a species, not stay around on this ball of rock indefinitely to babysit a bunch of tribesman who don't want our help and are culturally incompatible with our idea of liberal democracy. We cannot "fix" Afghanistan with western money or blood. The second commenter's NASCAR-level analysis has a shred of truth to it; Afghanistan is a state of irreconcilable ethnic groups, and we western nations who are wholly committed to never redrawing any borders are left with zero options.
What happens to the Afghan army once United States leave.....
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