US President Joe Biden

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

https://news.sky.com/story/afghanist...iate-12377962

Gives Page not found. The one below did work.

https://news.sky.com/story/fight-for...kabul-12379324

This was the one I had in mind, seems to be ok now
https://news.sky.com/story/afghanist...tiate-12377962

[TheDaddy]

Originally Posted by Carth

What I can't help thinking is (retired, too much time on my hands etc), once the Taliban have full control over Afghanistan, are all those fighters going to throw their weapons down and start farming?

Given that a 'Taliban' governed country will probably rule with laws & customs not admired by much of the western world, it seems to me they'll struggle somewhat with probable sanctions and things.

Pakistan their next target?

All seems like a waste of time really, if you notice though the area the taliban went for first was/ is in the North, the only part of the country they didn't get their grubby claws on last time, I think when leaders are so negligent there needs to be repercussions greater than them being voted out of office and retiring to the lucrative lobbying/ after dinner circuits, it's not right, the amount of blood and money this has cost needs something more substantial to show than running with our tail between our legs, Bush Jr and his obsession with the guy who tried to kill his daddy has a lot to answer for and is literally delivering those people into the hands of monsters

[Carth]

It'll end up being a nest of vipers, and I wouldn't like to be the next country that pokes it with a stick.

I think even Russia will back away from this one

[Mad Max]

I've often wondered why the Taliban, without the aid of an airforce, can make as much progress through Afghanistan, the link below supplies a few pointers to this.


https://www.latimes.com/world-nation...aliban-winning

[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by Carth

What I can't help thinking is (retired, too much time on my hands etc), once the Taliban have full control over Afghanistan, are all those fighters going to throw their weapons down and start farming?

Given that a 'Taliban' governed country will probably rule with laws & customs not admired by much of the western world, it seems to me they'll struggle somewhat with probable sanctions and things.

Pakistan their next target?

No - the USA!

Aged well?

President Biden, July 8, 2021: "The likelihood there’s going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely."

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-...n-afghanistan/

Oops …

It's a complete disaster. 20 years wasted.

I am not sure what could have been done to stop this as the USA/UK can't stay there forever but there has to be a better way than throwing the country under the bus.

Another surge might have helped to try and root out the Taliban but they don't seem to go away. America and ourselves seem to have achieved nothing for all that cost and bloodshed.

Sadly the US will always be on the back foot over any issue anywhere on the globe . Damned if they interfere/assist and damned if they don’t.

Once they, and we, did intervene we should have finished the job.

In fairness, the Afgan Government was pushing for the Americans to leave in 2014. They refused Obama's request to keep troops there. They must have relented eventually but it's been six years so far of borrowed time.

But their security forces are clearly not up to the job.

Originally Posted by Damien

Once they, and we, did intervene we should have finished the job.

In fairness, the Afgan Government was pushing for the Americans to leave in 2014. They refused Obama's request to keep troops there. They must have relented eventually but it's been six years so far of borrowed time.

But their security forces are clearly not up to the job.

Not sure how anyone "finishes the job" in an asymmetric warfare scenario (without "instant sunshine" glassing over the whole country)?

No one has ever successfully occupied Afghanistan (the book discusses Iraq as well), due to the terrain and tribal society - when the tribes are being defeated, they just fade back into the mountains, when the occupying troops lessen, they come back out again.

There is a really good book about this called "The Forever War" by Dexter Filkins that I would recommend to others for an insight into why it's a losing proposition, whatever anyone does.

[TheDaddy]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Not sure how anyone "finishes the job" in an asymmetric warfare scenario (without "instant sunshine" glassing over the whole country)?

No one has ever successfully occupied Afghanistan (the book discusses Iraq as well), due to the terrain and tribal society - when the tribes are being defeated, they just fade back into the mountains, when the occupying troops lessen, they come back out again.

There is a really good book about this called "The Forever War" by Dexter Filkins that I would recommend to others for an insight into why it's a losing proposition, whatever anyone does.

Britain has been successful there twice before and we could have been again. One thing that shocked me is a lot of the taliban fight for them because the pay, $5 a day is much better than being a farmer, we could have paid them more not to fight, there's a worldwide shortage of morphine we could have crippled their heroin operation solving that issue at the same time, I also remember one mid-high ranking taliban leader handing himself in to claim the reward, I'd like to think these things were looked at and taken on board by people that mattered

[Hom3r]

Sadly, the only way to defeat ISIS is a squadron of B52s and carpet bomb them off the planet, but this would kill thousands of innocent people.

[Carth]

Originally Posted by Hom3r

Sadly, the only way to defeat ISIS is a squadron of B52s and carpet bomb them off the planet, but this would kill thousands of innocent people.

Yeah 'cos that worked in Vietnam didn't it . . . something the USA should have learnt from.

You can't beat them on their own ground, you can push them back and 'contain' them, but that takes an awful lot of resources & manpower . . and again costs innocent lives.

The Taliban must be getting support from countries in the region that are not big fans of the U.S.A as well.