Corruption within Afghanistan has a place in these circumstances. It is my opinion, the corruption in the region is primarily due to the opium culture and its lucrative cash business. That cash, of course, provides for weapon procurement by the Taliban. Al Qaeda's specality is big bombs faciliated by suicide attackers. There isn't that sophisticated or that expensive about that weaponry. That is why the Taliban persist. They can run a 'dirt cheap' chaotic rebellion.
Transparency International ranks Afghanistan as high in corruption at number 176, which is somewhat correct, but that rating is tempered by the low number of surveys completed and the low level in 'confidence' in that rating. (click here)
I don't believe this corruption assessment overshadows any of the reports by General McCrystal or Secretary Gates. I am not willing to cast the word of the USA military aside in favor of a private rating entity on the ability of any form of Afghan government under democratic principled leadership aside.
One of the failures in Vietnam was that the leadership was removed from the reality of the soldiers. We need not repeat those mistakes. There needs to be a way for 'word' to get to the commanders in Afghanistan to know the logistics and best venues for success.
...McChrystal's assessment, (click here) as reported by The Washington Post, which obtained a copy of the document, laid out in blunt terms the magnitude of the problems facing the coalition forces in Afghanistan, with a warning that without additional troops by next year, the conflict "likely will result in failure." The requested troop surge would be in addition to the 68,000 U.S. soldiers expected by the end of this year.
"Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the near term -- while Afghan security capacity matures -- risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible," McChrystal wrote in his report. He also noted in his summary, "While the situation is serious, success is still achievable."...
Innocent people at the United Nation mission in Afghanistan were killed and wounded by those that use 'innocence' as a weapon. This attack is contrary to every provision of the Geneva Conventions, yet, it happens. This is not a 'fighting force' Afghanistan is dealing with, it is a Taliban Revolutionary Force seeking to 'undermine' the military presence in the country. There is no other way to a victory for the Taliban and al Qaeda. They have only crude weapons that cause chaos and confusion. The way to victory for any revolutionary force is for people to become intolerant of the violence to allow the oppression in its wake.
If the USA simply pulls up stakes and leaves, the face of the Afghan conflict will not end. Our allies will be forced into calling in all available forces through NATO. Europe has a much larger stake in this than the USA does. But, considering the recent suicide threat to the USA, whereby new recruits to al Qaeda still find access to the USA and its infrastructure, there is a question about the 'return' of the USA at some future date. I really don't believe we have a choice but to fight this war and succeed in creating a large enough Afghan force to hold the country in the face of Taliban infiltration.
A U.S. Soldier scans the adjacent mountains above a base in Kamdesh, Nuristan in 2006. This past weekend insurgents attacked the base and killed at least 8 US soldiers, one of the deadliest single attacks since the war began eight years ago.(Courtesy Sergio Caro)
The USA will be obligated to its presence in Afghanistan through NATO. President Obama has visited with the Secretary General of NATO. (click here) It is imprudent to sacrifice allies for a failed effort to date which lacked a strategy since 1980. This was the view of the NATO Secretary General as of September 28, 2009.
...Which brings the second benefit: boots on the ground. (click here) There are 35,000 non-US troops in the mission. That’s 40% of the total. And that number is going up. Over the last 18 months, about 9,000 extra troops have been provided to the mission from the non-US members. Sixteen countries have increased their contributions over that period. None has cut back. I’m not sure all of this gets as much visibility in the US as it deserves....
If we are going to be in Afghanistan through our NATO alliance; we may as well resolve to destroy the advantages of any Taliban insurgency and build Afghan forces to provide stability. This is more than a USA decision, quite frankly. This is not "Obama's War," it is however the failed war of Bush/Cheney. The NATO alliance has been 'hanging on' for a change in administration in DC. They know they can't fight this war alone. They couldn't defeat Hitler alone either.
Under attack: A Royal Marine firing mortars in Afghanistan
US military deaths in Afghanistan region at 774 (click title to entry - thank you)
The Associated Press
Of those, the military reports 595 were killed by hostile action.
Outside the Afghan region, the Defense Department reports 72 more members of the U.S. military died in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Of those, three were the result of hostile action. The military lists these other locations as Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Jordan; Kenya; Kyrgyzstan; Philippines; Seychelles; Sudan; Tajikistan; Turkey; and Yemen.
There were also four CIA officer deaths and one military civilian death.
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The latest deaths reported by the military:
— Eight soldiers died Saturday when enemy forces attacked two remote outposts in the Kamdesh district of Nuristan province, Afghanistan.
— One soldier died Saturday from a roadside bomb southwest of Kabul.
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The latest identifications reported by the military:
— Army Sgt. Aaron M. Smith, 25, Manhattan, Kan.; died Friday in Wardak province, Afghanistan of injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked their unit using small arms fire; assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.
— Army Pfc. Brandon A. Owens, 21, Memphis, Tenn.; died Friday in Wardak province, Afghanistan of injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked their unit using small arms fire; assigned to the 118th Military Police Company, 503rd Military Police Battalion, 16th Military Police Brigade, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, N.C.
— Army Sgt. Roberto D. Sanchez, 24, Satellite Beach, Fla.; died Thursday in Kandahar province, Afghanistan of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield Ga....
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On the Net:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/
It is customery when soldiers 'take the hill' they don't usually end up in the valley were they are surrounded by hillside. It seems the base should be on top of the mountain, where they can easily monitor activity on both sides of it and at every approach.
There isn't anything to say they have to close the base in the valley, but, all surrounding elevations should have secured outposts from the base to monitor activity and dispatch troops from the base as needed. The outposts can't be abandoned either for the sake of an early warning system, they have to be secured and sustained outposts that receive reinforcements as soon as trouble arises. Better though, to have additional 'bases' at the top of the mountain to stop this hideous victimization of our troops.
U.S. Afghanistan Base: Death Trap From The Beginning (click here)
'We're Sitting Ducks' Soldiers Told Reporter on 2006 Visit
By MATTHEW COLE
Oct. 6, 2009
The remote base in northern Afghanistan where eight U.S. soldiers were killed this weekend in a deadly battle was well-known inside the military as extremely vulnerable to attack since the day it opened in 2006, according to U.S. soldiers and government officials familiar with the area.
When a reporter visited the base a few months after it opened, soldiers stationed in Kamdesh complained the base's location low in a valley made most missions in the area difficult.
"We're primarily sitting ducks," said one soldier at the time.
Known as Camp Keating, the outpost was "not meant for engagements," said one senior State Department official assigned to Afghanistan, and brings "a sad and terrible conclusion" to a three-year effort to secure roads and connect the Nuristan province to the central government in Kabul.
The boulder strewn road that led into the valley was referred to by U.S. soldiers stationed there as "Ambush Alley."
In addition to the eight dead Americans, at least two Afghan Army officers were killed, with as many as a dozen Afghan National Policemen missing, according to military and Afghan officials.
We also don't need private contractors either (click here)
This war should have been over a long time ago, if the USA assets and resources weren't squandered in Iraq ! If one recalls, President Obama voted against any deployment in Iraq.
