- Mar 11, 2015
- 76,388
- 32,703
- 2,330
Such is the art of the deal.
Trump Administration Has Drastically Dropped Visas For Afghan And Iraqi Interpreters
May 1, 2019 5:10 AM ET
In light of the sacrifice made by Iraqis and Afghans who assisted U.S. forces, Congress created the Special Immigrant Visa Program to get them and their families to safety in the U.S. Farley says it was about gratitude and also an incentive for local nationals to help U.S. troops. Now veterans such as Farley, as well as dozens of lawmakers, say they're afraid the promise they made is being broken. Under the Trump administration, the number coming to the U.S. has dropped drastically.
Trump Attacks Biden For Afghanistan Chaos After Giving Taliban The Deal That Ensured It
Trump referred to the terrorist group as great “warriors” and even suggested they have a right to rule the country.
08/19/2021
“We had a good long conversation today and, you know, they want to cease the violence. They’d like to cease violence also,” Trump said on March 3, 2020, just days after the agreement ― which was made with the Taliban but not the U.S.-allied Afghan government ― was signed.
He told reporters he’d had a 35-minute phone call with the Taliban leader and had told him: “It is a pleasure to talk to you. You are a tough people and have a great country, and I understand that you are fighting for your homeland.”
Six months later, Trump said at a news conference: “They’re very tough, they’re very smart, they’re very sharp.”
Even now, with the Taliban having overrun the Afghan government and taken back control, Trump continued praising the group, known for its murderous, theocratic tactics. “I will tell you they’re good fighters. You have to give them credit for that. They’ve been fighting for a thousand years. That’s what they do is they fight,” Trump told Fox Business on Tuesday.
At one point, Trump even claimed that the Taliban would take over the counterterrorism operation the United States had been basing out of Afghanistan. “They will be killing terrorists. They will be killing some very bad people. They will keep that fight going,” Trump said.
In fact, by the time of the February 2020 agreement, the Taliban had essentially merged with al Qaeda, the terrorist group it had harbored leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on America. The Taliban’s refusal to hand over Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leaders to the U.S. was the basis for the U.S. invasion and removal of the Taliban from power in the first place.
“I was at a loss as to where he got a lot of his information,” a Trump White House official said on condition of anonymity.
Indeed, as Trump and some of his top aides attack Biden for the chaotic departure from Kabul that threatens to leave Americans as well as Afghan nationals who helped the U.S. to the mercy of the Taliban regime, they do so despite having set up the conditions that made a smooth evacuation and withdrawal nearly impossible without yet another troop surge.
That the deal was negotiated with the Taliban, without the Afghan government, immediately sent signals about their future. The Taliban’s lead negotiator, in fact, was released from a Pakistan prison at Trump’s request.
And in one of his final acts before leaving office, Trump reduced the U.S. military presence in the country to just 2,500 troops ― not nearly enough to maintain control of Kabul, let alone all the major cities and military installations, including Bagram Air Base, without the help of the Afghan government’s police force and army.
Those security units, however, largely surrendered or simply vanished as a Taliban sweep of the country looked ever more inevitable.
www.huffpost.com
Trump's deal with the Taliban set the stage for the Afghan collapse
History will mark Aug. 15, 2021, as the date that the Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban retook control over this troubled and war-torn country. But the real date that the Taliban's victory was assured is Feb. 29, 2020, the day the Trump administration signed what it characterized as a "peace" deal with the Taliban. Once this agreement was signed - the tragic collapse we witnessed this weekend was inevitable.
Of course, the agreement was not, and could not possibly have been, a "peace" deal since one of the parties currently at war - the Afghan government - was not a signatory. Rather, this was a "withdrawal" agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban that set the terms for the complete departure of American troops from Afghanistan by May 2021.
What did the United States gain in exchange for this withdrawal, for which the Taliban had been fighting for 20 years? Nothing but vague, unenforceable promises that the Taliban would not engage in hostilities against the departing U.S. troops and would "send a clear message" to al Qaeda that it "had no place" in Afghanistan. So eager Trump was to withdraw, we did not even hold out for a clear, firm commitment that the Taliban would not provide aid, safe harbor or weaponry to al Qaeda and like-minded groups. The agreement contained no enforcement mechanisms and included no penalties on the Taliban for failing to comply with its terms.
The fact that the United States entered into negotiations and then an agreement with the Taliban, without even inviting the Afghan government to the table, undercut the power and legitimacy of the government. The citizenry, including those in the national armed services and police, could plainly see that its own government was being ignored, a helpless bystander in critical discussions about the country's future. After we had cut the legs out from under this government and rendered it a paper tiger, it is no wonder that when those serving in the Afghan army and police were asked to fight, most said, "No, thanks."
Trump Administration Has Drastically Dropped Visas For Afghan And Iraqi Interpreters
May 1, 2019 5:10 AM ET
In light of the sacrifice made by Iraqis and Afghans who assisted U.S. forces, Congress created the Special Immigrant Visa Program to get them and their families to safety in the U.S. Farley says it was about gratitude and also an incentive for local nationals to help U.S. troops. Now veterans such as Farley, as well as dozens of lawmakers, say they're afraid the promise they made is being broken. Under the Trump administration, the number coming to the U.S. has dropped drastically.
Trump Attacks Biden For Afghanistan Chaos After Giving Taliban The Deal That Ensured It
Trump referred to the terrorist group as great “warriors” and even suggested they have a right to rule the country.
08/19/2021
“We had a good long conversation today and, you know, they want to cease the violence. They’d like to cease violence also,” Trump said on March 3, 2020, just days after the agreement ― which was made with the Taliban but not the U.S.-allied Afghan government ― was signed.
He told reporters he’d had a 35-minute phone call with the Taliban leader and had told him: “It is a pleasure to talk to you. You are a tough people and have a great country, and I understand that you are fighting for your homeland.”
Six months later, Trump said at a news conference: “They’re very tough, they’re very smart, they’re very sharp.”
Even now, with the Taliban having overrun the Afghan government and taken back control, Trump continued praising the group, known for its murderous, theocratic tactics. “I will tell you they’re good fighters. You have to give them credit for that. They’ve been fighting for a thousand years. That’s what they do is they fight,” Trump told Fox Business on Tuesday.
At one point, Trump even claimed that the Taliban would take over the counterterrorism operation the United States had been basing out of Afghanistan. “They will be killing terrorists. They will be killing some very bad people. They will keep that fight going,” Trump said.
In fact, by the time of the February 2020 agreement, the Taliban had essentially merged with al Qaeda, the terrorist group it had harbored leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on America. The Taliban’s refusal to hand over Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leaders to the U.S. was the basis for the U.S. invasion and removal of the Taliban from power in the first place.
“I was at a loss as to where he got a lot of his information,” a Trump White House official said on condition of anonymity.
Indeed, as Trump and some of his top aides attack Biden for the chaotic departure from Kabul that threatens to leave Americans as well as Afghan nationals who helped the U.S. to the mercy of the Taliban regime, they do so despite having set up the conditions that made a smooth evacuation and withdrawal nearly impossible without yet another troop surge.
That the deal was negotiated with the Taliban, without the Afghan government, immediately sent signals about their future. The Taliban’s lead negotiator, in fact, was released from a Pakistan prison at Trump’s request.
And in one of his final acts before leaving office, Trump reduced the U.S. military presence in the country to just 2,500 troops ― not nearly enough to maintain control of Kabul, let alone all the major cities and military installations, including Bagram Air Base, without the help of the Afghan government’s police force and army.
Those security units, however, largely surrendered or simply vanished as a Taliban sweep of the country looked ever more inevitable.
Trump Attacks Biden For Afghanistan Chaos After Giving Taliban The Deal That Ensured It
Trump referred to the terrorist group as great "warriors" and even suggested they have a right to rule the country.
Trump's deal with the Taliban set the stage for the Afghan collapse
History will mark Aug. 15, 2021, as the date that the Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban retook control over this troubled and war-torn country. But the real date that the Taliban's victory was assured is Feb. 29, 2020, the day the Trump administration signed what it characterized as a "peace" deal with the Taliban. Once this agreement was signed - the tragic collapse we witnessed this weekend was inevitable.
Of course, the agreement was not, and could not possibly have been, a "peace" deal since one of the parties currently at war - the Afghan government - was not a signatory. Rather, this was a "withdrawal" agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban that set the terms for the complete departure of American troops from Afghanistan by May 2021.
What did the United States gain in exchange for this withdrawal, for which the Taliban had been fighting for 20 years? Nothing but vague, unenforceable promises that the Taliban would not engage in hostilities against the departing U.S. troops and would "send a clear message" to al Qaeda that it "had no place" in Afghanistan. So eager Trump was to withdraw, we did not even hold out for a clear, firm commitment that the Taliban would not provide aid, safe harbor or weaponry to al Qaeda and like-minded groups. The agreement contained no enforcement mechanisms and included no penalties on the Taliban for failing to comply with its terms.
The fact that the United States entered into negotiations and then an agreement with the Taliban, without even inviting the Afghan government to the table, undercut the power and legitimacy of the government. The citizenry, including those in the national armed services and police, could plainly see that its own government was being ignored, a helpless bystander in critical discussions about the country's future. After we had cut the legs out from under this government and rendered it a paper tiger, it is no wonder that when those serving in the Afghan army and police were asked to fight, most said, "No, thanks."
