Nederland en Afghanistan 189

De Nederlandse regering moet bezuinigen wil ze de bankiers met miljarden blijven steunen. Misschien kan men de Nederlandse troepen terugtrekken die alleen maar de Afghaanse drugsbaronnen/krijgsheren aan de macht houden. Dat scheelt weer veel geld.

War against Taliban 'will be lost by autumn' unless strategy changes
The war against the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan will be lost by the end of the summer without dramatic changes in counter-insurgency strategy, according to a US military expert.

By Alex Spillius in Washington
Last Updated: 12:41 AM GMT 11 Feb 2009

The assessment of Col John Nagl, who is consultant to the US government as it conducts four policy reviews on Afghanistan, comes amid fears that unless the insurgents’ advance is halted, Afghanistan will become the new president’s Vietnam.
Adml Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he expected to announce the deployment of a further 30,000 US troops soon, even though President Barack Obama’s administration is waiting to evaluate the reviews.
The expectation in military circles is that Mr Obama will agree to the extra troops and the adoption of the approach that worked well in Iraq, where US forces concentrate on a “clear, hold, build” strategy designed to prevent captured towns falling back into enemy hands.
Col Nagl, an Iraq veteran who helped devise the strategy, told The Daily Telegraph that the gains made by the Taliban needed to be reversed by the end of the fighting season, around late September or early October, or else the Taliban would establish a durable base that would make a sustained Western military presence futile.
“Counter-insurgency campaigns have momentum, like a football game when the crowd senses something before it happens. Right now the Taliban has that momentum,” said Col Nagl.In his campaign Mr Obama committed to sending extra resources to Afghanistan and was bullish about the chances of success. But at a press conference this week, he played down expectations of ushering in a Western-style democracy and instead set a goal of preventing the country from becoming a haven for terrorists to “act with impunity”.
The president’s spokesman on Tuesday announced that he had asked Bruce Riedel, a former CIA agent and academic, to head an inter-agency review that would include civilian and military affairs in Afghanistan and the region.'
Zie: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/4585669/War-against-Taliban-will-be-lost-by-autumn-unless-strategy-changes.html