US mission in Afghanistan extends to 2017

[tomahawk6]

Ultimately they will either have to fight and win or flee the country.We carried the water for the ARVN but when we pulled out they lost the will to fight.If they could flee they left,if they couldnt they were off to re-education camps.

 

[PuckChaser]

Would the west return if the ANA faces defeat?

IMO the west returning to Afghanistan will dry up ISIS recruits in the middle East. Most jihadis would rather fight us than their own people.

 

[Altair]

IMO the west returning to Afghanistan will dry up ISIS recruits in the middle East. Most jihadis would rather fight us than their own people.

True, but I'm far more concerned with the taliban ruling a entire country again, even if that country is a third world backwater.

 

[PuckChaser]

Considering the minimal troops we have in Iraq holding ISIS back, I think its likely that a large NATO presence could return to Afghanistan. That would be post-2016 US presidential election, though. Obama would never re-commit troops back to Afghanistan because he'd be admitting he pulled everyone out prematurely for purely political gain. The ANA was not ready to take the lead on operations, but we were forced to simply check boxes for them and say they were during OP ATTENTION.

 

[Altair]

Don't think hillary is any more likely to send troops back in.

Although that may be veering this conversation into another thread.

 

[observor 69]

Obama to Announce Halt of U.S. Troop Withdrawal in Afghanistan
By MATTHEW ROSENBERGOCT. 15, 2015

WASHINGTON — The United States will halt its military withdrawal from Afghanistan and instead keep thousands of troops in the country through the end of President Obama’s term in 2017, Mr. Obama will announce on Thursday, prolonging the American role in a war that has now stretched on for 14 years.
The current American force in Afghanistan of 9,800 troops will remain in place through most of 2016 under the Obama administration’s revised plans, before dropping to about 5,500 at the end of next year or in early 2017, senior administration officials said.

Some of the troops will continue to train and advise Afghan forces, while others will carry on the search for Qaeda fighters and militants from the Islamic State and other groups who have found a haven in Afghanistan, they said.

In abandoning his ambition to bring home almost all American troops before leaving office, Mr. Obama appears to be acknowledging that Afghan security forces are still not near ready to hold off the Taliban on their own

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/world/asia/obama-troop-withdrawal-afghanistan.html

 

[Edward Campbell]

Source: http://www.marxist.com/asian-marxist-review-editors-note-autumn-2009.htm


No further comment ...

 

[George Wallace]

Looks like he is finally discovering what all previous Presidents have had to deal with when it comes to the commitment of troops overseas and the complexities of exit strategies after having done so.  I don't think he had his eyes fully open to these complexities up to now.  He rode a wave into the Presidency and has more or less coasted ever since, both on the international stage and domestically.

 

[Jarnhamar]

Some of the troops will continue to train and advise Afghan forces

That doesn't seem like a waste of time and money at all  ;D

 

[Edward Campbell]

Bennet in the Chattanooga Times Free Press:

                              The US Needs a New Exit Strategy ...

 

[CougarKing]

To the moderators: Perhaps it's time this thread be merged with the other thread titled Obama to announce halt to US troop withdrawal in Afghanistan?

They do both deal with the same topic.

Defense News

Obama extends Afghanistan mission into 2017
By Andrew Tilghman, Staff writer 1:15 p.m. EDT October 15, 2015

President Obama's long dream of concluding the war in Afghanistan before he departs the White House officially ended Thursday with the announcement that the U.S. will leave up to 5,500 troops there into 2017.

The announcement came after months of bad news from Afghanistan: The Taliban has scored a series of battlefield victories, the Afghan army's casualties are soaring and there are mounting worries that the Islamic State is gaining a foothold in rural areas.

"Afghan forces are still not as strong as they need to be," Obama said in a White House news briefing Thursday morning.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[CougarKing]

Another attack on Kabul:

Associated Press via Fox News

Death toll from Taliban attack in Kabul rises to 64
(Associated Press) | Updated April 20, 2016 - 8:43pm


KABUL — The death toll from Tuesday's Taliban attack in Kabul rose sharply overnight from 28 to 64, according to the Afghan Interior Ministry.

Gen. Abdul Rahman Rahimi, Kabul's police chief, said Wednesday during a press conference that two investigative teams have been appointed to investigate the attack in Kabul. He added that most of the casualties were civilians, including women and children.

The attackers targeted an agency that provides protection for high-ranking government officials, similar to the U.S. Secret Service. A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden truck outside the compound, and a pair of gunmen entered the compound in the aftermath before being killed.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[CougarKing]

Another drawdown before next year's end date:

Defense News

8,400 U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan, Obama says
Leo Shane III, Military Times 2:19 p.m. EDT July 6, 2016

President Obama on Wednesday announced a draw down of about 1,400 U.S. troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year, leaving 8,400 service members deployed to the war-torn country through the end of his presidency.

“I strongly believe that it is in our national security interest, especially after all the blood and treasure we've invested in Afghanistan over the years, that we give our Afghan partners the very best opportunity to succeed,” he said.

“The decision I'm making today ensures that my successor has a solid foundation for continued progress in Afghanistan as well as the flexibility to address the threat of terrorism as it evolves.”

(...SNIPPED)