US says goodbye to Afghanistan

[Vikrant]

President Obama just visited Afghanistan. He gave a short speech while he was there which details the withdrawal plan of the US.

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Now that US President Barack Obama has unveiled the drawdown plan for his troops in Afghanistan, India has clarity about three things: it has two years to firm up its Afghanistan strategy; that it will have to do so with less than a third of the present number of US soldiers there; and that it must brace for more attacks on its interests, both at home and in Afghanistan.

By the end of this year, the U.S. will reduce the number of its troops in Afghanistan to 9,800 and further cut that number by half by end-2015, subject to the Kabul administration signing a bilateral security agreement with Washington.

Making the announcement, Obama said: "We have to recognise that Afghanistan will not be a perfect place, and it is not America's responsibility to make it one."

Both the number of residual U.S. troops and Obama's comments hold significance for India and its future engagement in Afghanistan.

For one, the residual U.S. forces would perhaps be just enough to quarantine its own perceived security threats to the region but grossly inadequate to curb a Taliban resurgence much the same way that sectarian violence returned to Iraq after the U.S. withdrawal.

US says goodbye to Afghanistan: what it means for India - Hindustan Times

 

[bianco]

US troops in Afghanistan should've all been home years ago.
It's way past the time the People of Afghanistan should be fighting for themselves, for their own future...or facing the consequences.

 

[Vikrant]

“We can’t afford to let Afghanistan fall again in wrong hands,” says G. Parthasarathy, a former Indian high commissioner to Pakistan now based in New Delhi. “India has to shift its strategic thinking, from economic development to strengthening of the Afghan National Army.”

With US leaving, is Afghanistan turning to India?

 

[bianco]

“We can’t afford to let Afghanistan fall again in wrong hands,” says G. Parthasarathy, a former Indian high commissioner to Pakistan now based in New Delhi. “India has to shift its strategic thinking, from economic development to strengthening of the Afghan National Army.”

With US leaving, is Afghanistan turning to India?

About time someone else had a turn.
A turn at getting their young troops slaughtered for nothing.

If I were India I'd be staying right away from Afghanistan...watching 'Rambo3' will tell India all it needs to know.
If India wants to make a contribution it could send the US some money for drones and bombs.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Obama to Tolly-bon, "I surrender"

 

[waltky]

The Shia/Sunni conflict will really get rollin' once we're out of the way...

'The War Is Not Over When We Leave Afghanistan'
June 4, 2014 -- "This is what happens at the end of wars," President Obama said in Poland on Tuesday, as he defended his decision to swap Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five terrorists detained at Guantanamo Bay.

"The war is not over when we leave Afghanistan," Sen. Lindsey Graham said on Tuesday: "We're fighting al Qaeda, their affiliates, and people who provide material support, like the Taliban. These people will go back to the fight. President Obama has put Americans at risk all over the planet. And these people will go back to Afghanistan as sure as night follows day." Graham (R-S.C.), a military lawyer for 31 years, told Fox News that not only is the war ongoing, but the five terrorists Obama released from Guantanamo Bay are not prisoners of war: "They are unlawful enemy combatants, members of a terrorist organization," he said. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who walked away from his post in Afghanistan, was not a prisoner of war, either, Graham noted. The Pentagon reportedly never listed him as a POW.

Yet in his remarks on Tuesday, President Obama described what he did as a "prisoner exchange." "We have consulted with Congress for quite some time about the possibility that we might need to execute a prisoner exchange in order to recover Sergeant Bergdahl. We saw an opportunity," Obama said in Poland. "But this is what happens at the end of wars," Obama explained. "That was true for George Washington; that was true for Abraham Lincoln; that was true for FDR; that’s been true of every combat situation -- that at some point, you make sure that you try to get your folks back. And that’s the right thing to do."

If it's the right thing to do, why didn't the president try to help Americans under fire in Benghazi two years ago, Graham wondered: "When the president said one of the principles he follows closely is to never leave a man behind on the battlefield, this is the same president who was missing on the night of the Benghazi attack. This is the same president who never picked up a phone and intervened in Libya to try to get our rescue team out of the airport in Benghazi so they could go help the people under siege. This is the same president who will not account for his time during the attack of September 11th, 2012. "So, if you are really that dedicated to protecting our people, come clean with what you did during the Benghazi attack, Mr. President."

MORE

 

[Vikrant]

The Shia/Sunni conflict will really get rollin' once we're out of the way...

'The War Is Not Over When We Leave Afghanistan'
June 4, 2014 -- "This is what happens at the end of wars," President Obama said in Poland on Tuesday, as he defended his decision to swap Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for five terrorists detained at Guantanamo Bay.

"The war is not over when we leave Afghanistan," Sen. Lindsey Graham said on Tuesday: "We're fighting al Qaeda, their affiliates, and people who provide material support, like the Taliban. These people will go back to the fight. President Obama has put Americans at risk all over the planet. And these people will go back to Afghanistan as sure as night follows day." Graham (R-S.C.), a military lawyer for 31 years, told Fox News that not only is the war ongoing, but the five terrorists Obama released from Guantanamo Bay are not prisoners of war: "They are unlawful enemy combatants, members of a terrorist organization," he said. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who walked away from his post in Afghanistan, was not a prisoner of war, either, Graham noted. The Pentagon reportedly never listed him as a POW.

Yet in his remarks on Tuesday, President Obama described what he did as a "prisoner exchange." "We have consulted with Congress for quite some time about the possibility that we might need to execute a prisoner exchange in order to recover Sergeant Bergdahl. We saw an opportunity," Obama said in Poland. "But this is what happens at the end of wars," Obama explained. "That was true for George Washington; that was true for Abraham Lincoln; that was true for FDR; that’s been true of every combat situation -- that at some point, you make sure that you try to get your folks back. And that’s the right thing to do."

If it's the right thing to do, why didn't the president try to help Americans under fire in Benghazi two years ago, Graham wondered: "When the president said one of the principles he follows closely is to never leave a man behind on the battlefield, this is the same president who was missing on the night of the Benghazi attack. This is the same president who never picked up a phone and intervened in Libya to try to get our rescue team out of the airport in Benghazi so they could go help the people under siege. This is the same president who will not account for his time during the attack of September 11th, 2012. "So, if you are really that dedicated to protecting our people, come clean with what you did during the Benghazi attack, Mr. President."

MORE

Afghanistan does not have much of Shia vs Sunni conflicts. Their main source of instability is Taliban and Al Quida. People of Afghanistan are doing their best to fight it but there are outside forces which are meddling in Afghanistan's internal issues. That is why US support for people of Afghanistan's quest to fight the enemies of Afghanistan was/is so vital.

 

[52ndStreet]

What exactly was America trying to accomplish in Afghanistan ?. This Afghanistan has been invaded
many times for hundreds of years. No country has ever acheived their objectives in invading Afghanistan.
It has been home to warlords for centuries, and will continue to be as such.

 

[waltky]

What exactly was America trying to accomplish in Afghanistan?

Fearless W was tryin' to bust up al-Qaida...

... fer sendin' dem planes...

... into the World Trade Center towers.

 

[Vikrant]

What exactly was America trying to accomplish in Afghanistan ?. This Afghanistan has been invaded
many times for hundreds of years. No country has ever acheived their objectives in invading Afghanistan.
It has been home to warlords for centuries, and will continue to be as such.

911 attacks were carried out by Al Queda / Taliban controlled Afghanistan. Northern Alliance was already fighting Al Queda / Taliban to free Afghanistan. 911 simply forced the US to side with the Northern Alliance. With the help of US air raids, Northern Alliance defeated Al Queda / Taliban and force them to retreat into Pakistan. It was a decision of people of Afghanistan to invite US to help them with ongoing Al Queda / Taliban insurgency. So, how can you say that the US invaded Afghanistan?

 

[Moonglow]

From today to the time of Alexander the Great, armies from nations have tried to control the area of Afghanistan with no long term success..

 

[indiajo]

[ It was a decision of people of Afghanistan to invite US to help them ..

Oh yeah, was it? That's why they die so happily. I understand this now.
Like the Vietnamese people invited the US, or the Iraqui people, or the Syrian people, yes, I understand this now. You were always invited by the people.

 

[Vikrant]

[ It was a decision of people of Afghanistan to invite US to help them ..

Oh yeah, was it? That's why they die so happily. I understand this now.
Like the Vietnamese people invited the US, or the Iraqui people, or the Syrian people, yes, I understand this now. You were always invited by the people.

This thread is not about Iraq or Syria or Vietnam. This thread is about Afghanistan. So let us keep the focus on the topic. US did not invade Afghanistan. Taliban/Al Queda which was in control of Afghanistan back then attacked US. US response was to assist Northern Alliance through precision air raids against Taliban/Al Queda targets. Only after Northern Alliance liberated Afghanistan from Taliban/Al Queda that the US upon request of Northern Alliance leaders started setting up military bases to ensure that Taliban/Al Queda do not make a come back. Northern Alliance with the help of US forces setup a mechanism to implement democracy in Afghanistan which saw a countrywide election ending in Karazai as the elected President of the Afghanistan. There were years and years of good relations between Karzai and Bush administration which intensified programs to rebuild Afghanistan. Countries like India were also invited to build infrastructures in Afghanistan. Anyway, the US presence in Afghanistan was a result of the bilateral decision taken in Washington and Kabul.

So, once again, how did exactly US invade Afghanistan? Please elaborate on that.