U.S. may remove all troops from Afghanistan after 2014
By Mike Mount
The Obama administration is considering the possibility of removing all U.S. troops in Afghanistan after the NATO combat mission officially finishes at the end of 2014, White House officials said Tuesday.
The comments by Ben Rhodes, the White House's deputy national security adviser, come as the Pentagon and White House mull over the number of troops that could be left in Afghanistan after 2014 to fight insurgents and train Afghan security forces.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and President Obama are scheduled to meet on Friday in Washington.
Rhodes said the administration is considering a range of options, with one scenario having no U.S. troops there. The range, according to defense officials, had until recently been between 6,000 to 15,000 U.S. troops possibly remaining in the country, based on an assessment by the U.S. top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen.
"We have an objective of making sure there's no safe haven for al Qaeda within Afghanistan and making sure that the Afghan government has a security force that is sufficient, again, to assure the stability of the Afghan government and the denial of that safe haven," Rhodes said.
"That's what causes us to look for different potential troop numbers or not having potential troops in the country," he continued.
With Afghan president's visit, nations' post-2014 future takes shape
Rhodes said there were no expectations on any deal on post-2014 troop levels during the Karzai visit, and he said it could be months before any decision was made.
The White House remains committed to ensuring Afghanistan does not return to its status as a safe haven for Al Qaeda, Rhodes said
"The president does not view these negotiations as having a goal of keeping U.S. troops in Afghanistan," he said. "And we're guided by the shared missions that we've agreed to with the Afghans, the training and equipping of their forces, and counterterrorism."
But the United States also is insistent on legal protection for any troops in Afghanistan after 2014.
If there is no agreement on that between the United States and Karzai between now and the end of 2014, then it could lead to a similar situation for the United States when it left Iraq.
U.S. likely to keep thousands of troops in Afghanistan after NATO forces leave
The refusal by the Iraq government to extend legal protections for U.S. troops after the end of the war in Iraq was a major reason the United States left the country with no residual military training force.
But Karzai has said he would like for U.S. troops to remain after the end of the NATO mission. He also has been highly critical of the troops over the years, following incidents in which U.S. forces have killed civilians.
U.S. defense officials are playing a wait-and-see game on what the Karzai visit will produce.
As one defense official told CNN on Monday about the Afghan president, "It's Karzai; who knows what he will want on any given day."
@natlsecuritycnn on Twitter
It's either all or nothing.
If we leave a few thousand troops over there then we will have to beef up our forces every few months to fight the growing terrorist threat.
We only have 2 options: pull out and help ourselves financially or stay there and continue this useless war.
No if we leave some military over there to be attacked, then certain people will have a reason to ask why they died and they were not given the support they needed by Obama. Like Benghazi...............
this has been a nightmare. bring everyone of our troops home NOW. not in 1 year, but right now. throughout history army after army has failed time and again in afganistan. we are no different, it is a waste of time, life, and money to still be there and go against a never ending enemy.
voice of reason.
Thank you, redbaron120288. I totally agree. Even if Obama removed all the troops by the end of next year, it would still be 13 years too late!!! We need to let the Afghans determine their own future without outside interference.
George Patton: You... do understand that we're in Afghanistan to help protect it from negative influence, right?
Do I have to break you both?
Too many unscrupulous contractors whose pockets needed lining. Accept it, if a couple thousand young Americans had to be lost, so be it, they were expendable. All in the name of corporate greed and political corruption.
Vive Marat !!
It's way past time to leave that country ... the reasons for being there disappeared with the death of Osama
Do our troops a favor ... bring them home
Thats ok to pull out as soon as possible but you need to offer asylum to every female in the country just to be fair about it. And CNN, do not do any more heart felt stories about how bad life is for women that that country just because you want the US to leave Afganistan.
One of the most overused words of 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 8 days of 2013 – Kool-aid.
Both sides think the other side is drinking it. So shut up already and come up with a new and intelligent way of getting your point across.
Thank you.
Clint Eastwood said it so elegantly in 10 seconds; Mr President get us out.
No need to wait. Withdraw now. Let what is to happen happen. We can't change 5,000 years of a culture that is not capable of peace.
Actually this war mess began with Bush and, The fact is we were lied to and should never have been in either country to begin with. These wars screwed up our country and economy. its all about politics, oil oil oil,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Theeiss wahr mess was awl Bush's fawlt Maw. We neber had wun befower dat.
You're an idiot.
stay off the drugs
Obama said he would have them out in his first term – lie. Now he is using useless media outlets to float full pull out in 2014. Another bunch o malarkey.
No he didn't. That was Iraq. It was always 2014 for Afghanistan.
C'mon now, Dan. You should know better than to rain on a Right wing nut's parade by introducing facts.
Your posting is malarky. Typical of the anti-Obamniacs with no facts. You have to lie to justify being ignorant and continuing to oppose President Obama. Logic and facts escapes people like you. Obama never, not once promised he would get all out military out of Afghanistan. Not once. That was as you have already been informed of many times I am sure, Iraq.
We're still doing that Afghanistan thing? I thought they kicked us out a few years back.How sad, all those kids blown to hell, all that money spent...for absolutely nothing.
Heck of a job georgie.
Will be glad to see this VietNam Part II come to a close. Unfortunately for the all the women and girls in Afghanistan, it will be open season.
The sooner the better we exit.
I was very dissapointed that President Bush did not support a tax increase to pay for the war on terror in Afganiastan and Iraq. And President Obama's not requesting a tax increase for that purpose also. Both have been failures in this respect.
I am getting tired of policing the world like this. I drains our wealth as a nation and we are left hold bills for being igorant like this.
AND YES, MR.PRESIDENT THE WORLD HAS A PROBLEM WITH THE MUSLIM IDEAOLOGY LINK TO TERRORISM. GET A CLUE WILL YOU.
After murdering and terrorizing tens of thousands of innocent people
Feel free to go to Afghanistan and protect all them innocents. When you grow a backbone. You clowns like to talk a lot of garbage but haven't the spine to do anything about it do you?
If the troops are packin' Al Zarwahiri, Gadan, and Omar with them for their well-deserved trial (or funeral), let's bring the troops home post haste!
Mistake. Turned our backs on Tibet and now this.
Feel free whenever you have the backbone, to go to Afghanistan and protect all those innocents. The more likely scenario however is that you will continue to show your ignorance from a keyboard.
1) Either have a MISSION – or bring all our guys home. We have NOT had a mission there in 4 years, the ROES Obama's administration put on our boys has increased their deaths and maimings 3X in the past 4 years. So if there is no goal and there is no ability for our boys to DO THEIR JOB and FIGHT – GET THEM ALL OUT!
2) STAND BEHIND YOUR MEN – or get the all out. We have spent the last 3+ years throwing our own boys under the bus for any and every little infraction you can think of (admin paper stuff, uniforms, what they say, etc)... If you are not going to back your men – then GET THEM OUT!
3) Prepare for the un-employment in the plan of bringing them home. Every fighting soldier employs on average 3x in the civilian jobs (tents, vests, guns, etc etc etc). So PUT A PLAN in place for what you are going to do with all of them, or you will flood the jobless market even higher.
Uh, just because we bring soldiers back from Afghanistan, does not mean we fire them and put them in the unemployment line. If the military determines that it needs to lower it's recruitment numbers, they have ways of doing that. They don't just say to soldiers "Well, the war is over. Have a nice day!" They don't recruit as much and they offer incentives like early retirement/discharge on a volunteer basis.Surely you're not suggesting we should continue hostilities against a soveregn nation to keep people employed!
Just like the soviets, with the tail between their legs.
You got some big missiles on that armchair...
I'm unimpressed
What a simpleton. Russia left Afghanistan because it was broke after trying to fight an unwinnable war for 20 years. You armchair warriors do not have a freaking clue to reality. You do know the ignorant rhetoric though don't you?
Dude we spent 10 trillion dollars on that war in 10 years so far. Money we don't have. I would say we are pretty fuuucked just like Soviets.
Their or we, Pete?
Pete....if you were here I'd mop my hardwood floor with your face.
Typical embellishment from a sock puppet.. 10 trillion huh? You have no freaking idea about anything you post do you? The FACT is we have not spent one trillion in Afghanistan much less 10 trillion. Have you ever heard of research? You best keep to your keyboard. You would be too dangerous to be around given your lack of functional brain cells.
Yeah...I had to go Bruce Banner for a moment....ROAR! What a jerk. Troops coming home is serious convo.
I didn't read the article but I did read the headline. Great idea, get them out asap. If we, the United States, feel that we need to monitor Afghanistan at any time, we can just park some drones above its airspace 24 hours a day, every day of the year, for an infinite amount of time and watch what is happening all we want and with no threat to our troops. Then if we see something that truly threatens our national interest, some Air Force Captain sitting here at his desk in the states, can get authorization through the proper channels and take it out. Problem solved, next issue.
I will believe it when i see it
The area needs to be stabilized now. Either way if we leave now, we'll go back in a decade.
That's pretty nice of King Obama to "consider" after the election something he promised to do before it. What other promises did he make that he might now "consider"?
As long as they get done. Better late than never.
Geeze, John. You'd complain about what Obama had for breakfast if you could. Get over it. Live in the present. The decision to pull out now is a good one. Get over it.
When did PRESIDENT Obama "promise" to pull all troops out of Afghanistan? Give me a date, time and place. You made the claim, I happen to know it is false, so provide when he did this. He never, not once made any such "promise". You anti-Obamaniacs, have to create lies to keep supporting your ignorance. Pretty typical actually. BTW he was born in Hawaii......
thegrio,com/2011/06/22/obama-30000-plus-troops-leaving-afghanistan/
just change the , to a .
Not even close. Obama said he would be withdrawing the surge troops. The 33,000 additional military sent to bolster the effort to weaken the ability of Al Qaeda to train and conduct missions. Nice try. Want to try again and show where he "promised" he was going to remove ALL military from Afghanistan? It never happened.
Time to pack it up, 10 years of killing and waste for what? Bin Lauden? They were a tribal society when we came and they will be medieval or worse after we leave. Cut the losses. Time to deal with our own issues now.
One generation of veterans feeling sorry for themselves is enough. Let's not have two.
As opposed to the armchair weaklings who are simply to cowardly to put on a uniform.....like you?
Some comments really make the stupid list. But there's not really an accurate description for this one. A p@nsy who will never defend the very freedom he takes advantage of every day – and bites the hand that feeds him, and performs the necessary duty to give him the right to say such stupid things.
We should get totally out tomorrow. Its less embarrassing than being thrown out like we were in Vietnam. We don't belong in the mideast, or any other country. We should put all that wasted money on improving the US.
Or paying off our debt...
Excellent news, but let's speed this up. The sooner we leave these barbarians to the storage the better.
These are serious implications left to far more serious dudes than me. I'd like to wish every member of the military and private forces that gets to come home safe travels and Godspeed.
We fired our cannons till the barrels melted down,
Then we grabbed an alligator and we fired another round.
We filled his head with cannonballs and powdered his behind,
And when we touched the powder off, the gator lost his mind.
after that .....
We found the German battleship t'was makin' such a fuss
We had to sink the Bismarck cause the world depends on us
We hit the deck a runnin' and we and spun those guns around
Yeah we found the mighty Bismarck and then we cut her down
Old Hickory said we could take 'em by surprise,
If we didn¹t fire our muskets till we looked 'em in the eyes.
We held our fire till we seen their faces well,
Then we opened up our squirrel guns and gave 'em a little...Well....we...
BE THE FIRST ONE ON YOUR BLOCK TO HAVE YOUR BOY COME HOME IN A BOX...
ya right, all you bleeding heart anti war hippies can keep dreaming. The afghans will not be close to taking care of themselves in 2014. I love how you all talk about that which you know nothing about, dont quit your dayjob. BTW im gonna enjoy my tax free 65K dollar salary this year while im down range, thanks tax payers!!!
Take your PTSD BS elsewhere, Glad to see this quagmire ending.
Are you drunk again, SOF?
Wow...how impressive! A whole $65k a year? You must eat the Admiral's boogers to be paid such a "gigantic" salary in Afghanistan.
Why wait? Do it NOW!
Really, what more does anyone think we'll accomplish in the next 24 months, other than spending bazillions more dollars and wasting even more lives? What possible good could it do?
Yes! Bring our troops home now! Obama needs to do the right thing and stand for something! Bring them home now!
Bring them home so Obama can use them on the American people. Obama is a filthy communist. I would call him a traitor but he was never a true American.
maybe he is and maybe he is not! he was elected by the people so deal with it Joe.
He was not elected by the people.
Joe was attending a foil-hat convention with the brotherhood in the backwoods of west virginia on Nov 7, he missed a few happenings in the real world that week.
Filthy communits? McCarthy? Is that you? I knew that was you.
we are wasting time american lives and our national treasures in the middle east. we have been doing it for years and they still hate us. these are stone aged people living in stone aged countries following a faith of stone aged violence. let them all take up killing each other as a national past time if they want to and by what we see they love it. sell arms to both sides or even give arms to both sides so they can kill each other faster. i am 62 years old and am bored with this part of the world being front page news. the only news i want to hear about from the middle east is the daily body count of dead Muslims.
Well said.
What a sick, transparent and rigged game this is!
Today is an historic day ! It is a gesture of utmost magnanimity and generosity by Pakistan to continue to enable our American and NATO friends and allies to achieve common goals by offering their national resources and standing with them shoulder to shoulder. They are our partners and we share a unified vision in addressing the challenges facing the world.
Together we shall prevail, as we have done in the past while overcoming insurmountable odds. After all, the Americans and Pakistanis share common values and history in the struggle for their Independence and their fight for survival.
God Speed. "In God We Trust".
Amen to that. I share your sentiments, partner.
Wow, looks like someone drank deeply from the Kool Aid...
USSR skeedadled a few years ago, so we're not the first. Even the Brits had trouble with these toga nazis. It's not ability, it's will power.
The U.S. troops need to be pulled out yesterday
This war is not even discussed to a significant in the American press.
It's almost like the war was a big mistake and eventually just left America at the fighting table.
I did a career in the military, helped fight some tough and justifiable warms but have nothing much to say about this recent war in Afghanistan or Iraq.
We now need to focus on India. The American invasion of Afghanistan brought to the forefront the irrelevance of India as a nation. With a population of over 1.2 billion people there was no value that this nation could bring to the table. Their soldiers (ragtag) 1.2 million continue hiding in the trenches scared from Talibans. A few teenage Talibans invaded the country and held it hostage for days on end showing how useless India is. It was embarrasing for the world to observe this humiliation of a nation that was being touted as a regional power.
I continue to read with interest the thesis presented on CNN that "less is more" in a political context as applied to India. Although Mies Van Der Rohe adopted this in an architectural context, its economic and political connotations are indeed powerful. Empowering subjugated minorities in India by splitting it into smaller states would trigger uber economic demand for western nations who have given so much financial and technology aid to India with no return to show for the investment. I concur with this approach and with an economic background find the premise to be on solid footing. Central Asian States (CAS) are a case in point on this successful approach. We need to understand that India has an unmanageable large population mired in poverty and we are spinning our wheels trying to feed it. It is also too big of a geographical unit to govern. Again, we saw how a few teenage talibans were able to invade it with a few BB guns. And that says a lot... in a negative way not only for a large unmanageable country like India but also for USA which is trying to prop it up against China. Besides, Americans cannot afford to look like losers in the midst of a terror war which has lasted for over ten years now.
That kind of thinking is the reason England is no longer an empire. If we continue to follow their example, we will join them in their obscurity. We should never send anyone to fight a battle whose main purpose is to "save face"
Pakistan lobby, working overtime...... Ha Ha Ha
1How did the discussion go from Taliban to breaking up of India!! Nobody is feeding India! No US military aid goes to India. India was, is and will remain neutral in this war.
You forgot your meds again dude!
(Lots of Pakistani's trolling around her)
I dont want ot be affiliated with a country like India that gang r-apes its womenfolk
Maybe you should look at a map of the region. It is pakistan which borders afghanistan. India has a huge reserve of Scientists and Engineers and is progressing into the 21st century while the pakis stew in their own waste unable to accomplish anything without the billions they receive from the American Taxpayer while they constantly betray us.
no... we need to focus on the United States of America.
Will see.
We can protect ourselves from the "enemy" across seas but we can't protect within our borders?
Pull out now! why wait for 2014. what's the difference? it was an abysmal faliure anyway, 1 year aint gona matter
and I bet it will save a lot of lives...American lives.
So you are saying killing Bin Laden was a waste of time?
Get those soldiers out NOW!!!!!
AMen!
Wow, not much to add here but it is heartening to see so many posts saying to get out now. Don't like Obama much, but if he gets us COMPLETELY out of Afghanistan, I'd consider him a decent president.
Why wait till 2014? Do it today and save 200 billion dollars.
from your lips to Allahs ears! we wish...
We can't protect our troops having a full force there as it is now. How could we possibly protect even a smaller force left behind? They want us out so bad ... well let's honor their wish and get out.
Pakistan and Afganistan are considered one country by the locals. Just because England drew a line in the sand in 1900 doesn't mean they recognize it as two countries. Anyone who believes Pakistan did not know Osama was there is a fool. just as the fighters fled to Pakistan during the Soviet invasion, they did so today. The Taliban are surely just safely hiding there now waiting out this pointless occupation. Unless we are willing to escalate this war to another decade long and bloody conflict with Pakistan, we have lost this war. Let us bring our men back , and apologize to them for the political posturing that failed them.
I would relocate back to the US homeland our bases in Germany, UK, Okinawa, South Korea, and Taiwan and set them up strategically in the US - it would be a giant boon to the US economy
that is a horrible idea.
Who funds the Taliban? The Pakis.
There is no point in being in Afghanistan while we call our enemy our "ally". It's like trying to mop up the left half of a basement when the overflowing sink is on the right side. Either fix the sink or get out.
Furthermore, we've been feeding the Pakistanis money to allow our supply trucks to get to Afghanistan. They use that money for funding terrorists. Basically, we have been paying for the bullets that killed our own soldiers.
Enough. Let them rot.
PAKISTAN !!!!
THANK YOU …. THANK YOU…. THANK YOU!!!!
FOR MAKING USA SAFE FOR MAKING THE WORLD SAFE>>>>>>>>>>>>
Since Sep 11, 2001, over 200,000 Pakistani civilians, armed forces personnel have either sacrificed their lives or wounded; more than 3.5 million have been displaced while the country has lost over US $ 1 Trillion due to terrorism.
Despite sacrifices, Pakistan was still engaged in 'the war for world peace”.
No other country has even come close to selflessly sacrificing so much.
Pakistan, no one can ever repay you enough for your contributions.
agree with you in substance, but your rationale doesn't seem to get that these wars are basically a profit strategy for bomb makers and other participants in the M-I complex.
Pakistan military/politicians want things to remain same in Afghanistan, so that they can keep filling coffers from drug money.
So why wait till end of 2014..why not before end of 2013...families/friends are waiting for sons/fathers/husbands/friends
Big, fat, hairy deal. My husband still has to go there this Spring. Wouldn't it be ironic if he died there in the last days of our occupation?
Tragic and unnessacary more to the point.
odd statement to make ... I hope nothing happens to him or any other service man....
I sincerely hope for his sake that somehow our troops are home before he has to go.
Pull them all out –every last one -- and do not leave an embassy there either – it will have a Taliban bullseye on it.
If we find it necesary to leave troops in a God forsaken place like Afghanistan which has ZERO national security interests for the US, we will be leaving troops in every country in the World. Pull them all out. if we egin to see terrorist training camps pop up, we have a suitable response with CMAD (Cruise Missles And Drones).
KARZAI wants $2 Billion in aide a year of which in my estimation 10% of that goes to him and his cronies pockets. If Karzai wants to kiss azz with Iran, Russia, or China let him be and see if he gets $2B a year.
it would be more like the other way around ... only 10% would be used the rest in their pockets ... if even.
it cannot happen fast enought. its just like Vietnam
Only longer and more casualties!
No. 60000 casualties in Nam. Little over 4000 in Afgh. Tragic nonetheless
except with Vietnam, we didn't know any better. worse now
I for one welcome our new Taliban overlords. Look at the bright side... When they take back the country we get easier targets.
I am not saying we should be ordered back to the states. But when that happens the VA is gonna be over whelmed with more cases. And the VA's budget is already so underfunded it is pathetic. Cases that need a decision that should take 90 days are taking up to one year or more just to make a decision. By that time some of the soldiers / veterans have killed themselves or have become homeless. If we we get are pulled out and get sent home at least increase the VA budget to help cover the cost of the soldiers being discharged with major medical and psychological conditions.
2020 is after 2014
I am very thankful for our brave men and women who are putting their lives in harms way and sacrificing for America and for the free world. Most soldiers understand the threats humanity faces and understand that we must keep our resolve in the face of evil. An evil that wants to destroy America. We will not allow Afghanistan to become another safehaven for terror. We will not allow the Afghan women to start being stoned to death again. We stand for our universal principles of humanity and freedom. I sure do miss President George W. Bush's moral courage and soundness.
There is no threat to our country in Afghanistan
The Afghan Navy could launch a sea assault against Houston at any time. Afghan submarines have been seen off the coast of Texas. A fleet of landing craft, disguised as oil tankers and Hyuyndai shipping vessels are on the way right now. And the Chinese will back the Afghans up by refusing to supply any more cheap crap to Wal-Mart – which will collapse our economy. Is that crazy enough or should I watch more Faux News?
We went over there to "get the evil doers" this has been accomplished (at least as far as we will be able to do over there). We should not be in the business of forcing our values on other nations. I know it's unfortunate but these people do not want to change and we simply don't have the national resources to force them to behave like us. (not that we behave that well ourselves).
If we continue keeping troops over there we may as well slap big targets on their backs and wish them luck because they will be dying but not for our freedom or anything else we value.
so...we might do something in 24 months...thanks for the heads up, but too much will change between now and then to put a lot of stock in this one.
Please dear God! Leave no U.S. troops in Afghanistan. My Air Force son served 2 tours in Iraq and is now in Afghanistan, on the ground in villages. My Army son served once in Afghanistan looking for IEDs. He found 1, but 2 found him. He's going back in March for Fighting Season (yes, they have a Fighting Season. Google it.)
Here's what they say: You fight the Taliban. You accidentally kill someone's brother. The brother picks up a gun. You kill him. His son picks up a gun. Now we're fighting the Taliban AND farm boys. They both say there's no telling enemy from civilian. Sound like Vietnam? The only difference is that one of the countries had enough water.
I see no reason to keep sending my sons to Afghanistan to look for IEDs. Let the Afghanis find their own d*** IEDs, and the people who plant them. Let them take care of their own roads and children.
I agree David M. I like many other Americans got caught up in the "Lets make someone pay for 911". Democrats and Republicans were all on the same page, that "we must do something". Now years later, we have accomplished much. If you say we didn't then I invite you to look at Iraq and think back to their X leader that was promptly hung. My point is, we have done a lot over there. However, we still must understand that their hatred for one another extends millenniums. Not decades people. Thousands of years! We are not going to change peoples minds. We are in a country that the majority of Afghans do not even want us there. Our men and women are dying over there mainly from ambush or IEDs. I say pull our troops back ASAP, I am a republican all the way through and through. I support Bush and why we went in in the first place. But I think its far past time now to let them take their own country back over, we have given them ample time to "train their troops". Let them deal with their own mess from now on. Most middle eastern's despise Americans, yet we are the first they call when all hell breaks loose and a devastating disaster happens? Bring our military home but DON'T just give the people an exact date.
I agreed with the reason why we went to Afganistan in the first place. The Taliban supported Bin Laden while he planned the 911 Attacks on the USA and the Taliban terrorized its citizens using the soccer stadium for public executions on a scheduled basis. They had no redeeming value. The message was clear "if you support terrorism against the USA, we will come and get you. We removed the Taliban; and it was time to leave THEN. We can always send drones in later if necessary. We should not be nation building in countries that need a 1000 years of "catching up". Remove the Taliban and "move on".
I have preayed for the military to come home.
Certain Afghans are making plenty of money from our being over there offering protection while losing soldiers lives. Time to give it up folks. Those people will be living a few centuries behind the rest of the world forever.
Let's not kid ourselves. We had to invade Afghanistan to save our pride and to show the world that we had the financing and forbearance to fight this war on ground chasing the shadows. But ego aside, we all know that winning the endeavors in Afghanistan is not possible without Pakistan. Yes, we have cajoled Pakistan over the years, threatened them, poor boyed them, played the neighbor against them, let the congressional dogs lose doing the god guy – bad guy routine and done the carrot – stick dance. All to no avail. We tried partnering with India in Afghanistan and that has been a disaster. We may have won a battle or two but are on the verge of losing the war. We have hit a wall.
The time has now come to do the tango with Pakistan. That takes boldness and a desire to commit one self. And that is what we need to do. We need to form a strategic partnership with Pakistan...a long term alliance...and a commitment. We need to lay the cards on the table and not pull the rug from under them. At the same time we need to make them understand the consequences of going wayward on us. We need to evolve a common vision...and common grounds for constructive engagement. We then need to support them and then let them implement the common vision in the region under our supervision. After all, they can do it more productively, efficiently and economically than we can. That is for sure... a lesson we have learned the hard way.
Bingo !!!!
You honestly think krm1007 that Obama has the boldness to go into Pakistan? This president voted against the war from start to finish. He isn't about to do anything else over the next 4 years militarily. He will always be known as the President that "brought our troops home" to their happy families. Then when all hell hits the fan again, we will have to rely on another President, more than likely a Republican that will have the balls to go in to Pakistan or even.... shiver... Iran!
Except for one eensie-weensie little problem: the Pakis don't like us and don't want us there any more than the Afghans. We've been tryong to get them to play ball for years with no joy. Oh, and let's not forget, they have nukes. That's why Dubya handled them with kid gloves.
Poignant but so true
I agree with your analytics !
Bullseye
"We", Paki?
There is nothing left in Afghanistan but Blood, Sweat, and Tears. Afghans have had more than ten years to learn how to take care of themselves, guess what they never will. For ever insurgent we kill we make three more, its a loosing battle. We can go anywhere in the world and find fix and kill the bad guys, but we are not good at nations building, its just too expensive, takes too long, too much American blood and too much American money.
We killed UBL, mission complete, its time to leave.
Pull them out NOW, let the subhumans get on with killing each other, that's the way it's been in that godforsaken bunghole since dirt was new.
There is nothing dearer to those people's hearts than caving in each others' heads. They have been doing it for 5,000 years and will be doing so 5,000 years from now. I believe the United States should invest in whatever it takes to become energy independent, tell those people to keep their oil. and get out. At the same time we keep the money we are giving them in foreign aid and use the money being spent on the wars for more profitable enterprises.
Within six months of our departure they would be fighting among themselves. At least while they are preoccupied with that, they would be leaving everyone else alone. With a little luck they would be at it for at least 50 years.
But fear not; there will eventually be peace in the middle east. I will happen wehen we manage to kill ourselves off through environment destruction or whe the sun runs out of hydrogen fuel, swells into a red giant, and turns this world into a molten ball of rock. Which ever happens first
Good, it was a total waste of lives and money.
I've got a much better idea.... pull them out in 60 days. Green on Blue killings can't occur if out troops are not in harm's way.
It will be nice to have our troops come home, though I am concerned what happens when the present government there is overrun by the Taliban and Al Quada sets up shop again. Will the next attack on US soil be worse than 9/11? Will they have their hands on a nuke by then? Can the US intelligence community keep intercepting the threat as they have been? I despise the thought of keeping our troops there indefinitely, but the possibility of another attack on the US scares the hell out of me. Tough call for sure.
Very reasonable and concise statement.
You have very legitimate and grave concerns. I think many Americans share your concerns. However, I think pulling us out of Afghanistan is Step 1 in reducing Muslim extremist anger toward the US. The terrorists didn't attack us on 9/11 because we're 'free' or a 'Christian nation' or we're 'rich' or any other bogus reason you hear from both Democrats and Republicans. They attack us because we're on their soil. We had heavy troop presence in the Middle East during the late '90's, not to mention a few bombings in Sudan and Afghanistan in the late '90's. Getting out of this part of the world and ending the meddling in their affairs is what we need to do. This is the only thing that will truly reduce the threat towards us.
I'm affraid you are a bit naive if you believe removing ourselves from the Muslim world will stop them from attacking US citizens.
...13 yrs of war....
during the end of my deployment, I was asking my NCO if he was excited that we were coming home.
he replied, my soul is very tired... I just want this to end
I still remember his remark
If only the chickenhawk, neocons understood that feeling, they would have never generated the lies and fear/hate mongering that they used to drag us into these useless wars.
There is no lower form of life than a chickenhawk.
Use your GI Bill benefits, get an education. Life gets better, you'll see.
Thank you, sir for your devotion to duty and your unselfish sacrifices to our nation and the free world. I hope and pray this is the right thing to do. Let's hope we never have to return.
A wise man your NCO is, a wise man indeed.
Many believe God causes people to die,so they take God's power of life and death in wars,Capital Punishment,etc.,believing they're doing what God would do.But death entered the world because of man's sin of pride at Eden,the first sin.So because of that sin God has appointed man once to die,God has reserved the power of life and death to Himself,and man sinfully takes it killing even the innocent in wars,Capital Punishment,etc.Nothing is equal to God so man can't take God's power of life and death making himself equal to God,as he sought to do in Genesis chapter 3,and sinned.Before man's fall at Eden,God had Created man to live forever,after man's fall man causes his own death,as he did at Eden,even as in wars,and only through Jesus Christ's Cross and Gospel can man's relationship to God be restored,and have eternal life in God's Kingdom on earth,and not through any other way,such as wars.
The world was created with 3 comprehension aids: paragraphs, paragraphs and paragraphs.
Without them, it is hard to digest what is being said.
They should pull all the troops out NOW!!!!
Someone break old man McCain out of mothballs, it's time for his warmonger rant. This country gave up on these asinine, unwinnable wars years ago. Get out, and lets not get fooled again....and again, and again...
The best solution would be to bring them all out as soon as possible. If they need further training, send them some manuals or tell them to Google it.
What fails me is, CNN talks about Al Qaeda as bad, when, the U.S. has them on payroll in Syria as rebel fighters.
Double standards perhaps?..
CNN? Surely you jest. (Don't mean to call you Shirley)
lol more ignorance. Free Syrian Army is NOT Al Qaeda. Love to see that you are on the side of Assad the genocidal war criminal instead of the side for freedom and human dignity.
Nobody is on the US side when it comes to Syria. That is why we are stating out of it militarily. Whoever wins there will be anti us, just like in Iraq and Afghanistan. We should get out, keep a force in the region and strike terrorists wherever they may be.
Actually, a bunch of them are. They're pro-Islamists. And many of them are Al-Queda or Muslim Brotherhood. Let them fight their own battles. WE ARE GIVING THE TERRORISTS WEAPONS!!!
Karzai wants our troops there because he knows as soon as we leave they will hang his puppet a s s just like saddam.
Unbelievable. You are comparing a democratic elected leader to a sadist tyrant? Shame on you.
Democratically elected leader???...In Afghanistan??? Too funny.
As much as I'd like to believe Karzai is on our side, I could not say what you said and keep a straight face. This is a very tough call. Obama is gambling that the Taliban will not take over the country and allow Al Quada to regroup. Let's all hope he's right because if he's wrong, we're in deep trouble.
Democratic leader? He was a puppet put in place by GWB. And he obviously hasn't done his job, or the bad guys would be long gone by now.
Yup. Another civil war coming down the pike for Afghanistan. Sucks.
A lot of moral cowards out in full force. We need to keep our resolve and stay until the job is done. Never forget 9/11. Never forget the plight of free people. The U.S. is a force for good in the world and needs to stay that way.
The ones you speak of will be the first to whine when the Taliban and Al Quada re-groups then starts lobbing small nukes into their neighborhoods.
The job IS done unless of course your a Republican, then another 100 years should cover it.
So do we stay another 5 years, 10 years, 20 years? Just when the hell do you think the job will be done?
We have already sacrificed so much. We don't just pull out the last second before the job is done. We pull out by 2014 and keep a small force behind for counter-terrorism. Do you want another 9/11 type attack to take place on our soil? Use that cognitive faculty skills and understand the threats posed to America and human civilization.
How many kids do you have in the military right now??
Let me remind people that we went into Afghanistan to get Bin Laden not for regime change. Well. we got him and now it's time to bring our troops beck home. Let the Afghan people sort out what type of government they want. Has no one learned the lessons of Vietnam or Iraq? Regime change from the outside doesn't work.
We also went to make sure that the Taliban are out of power. The Taliban harbored Bin Laden. The target was regime change and we must understand that free people don't resort to terror.
"Regime change from the outside doesn't work."
That's a very accurate statement. Let's hope the bad guys don't take over the country after we leave or we could be in a very bad position here at home.
Go get yourself some glory hero. Stay there until you've righted all evilness...USAUSAUSA
Not for long it isn't! Not with a president that wants to reduce any & all power USA has & appointed the perfect stooge to help him, 'Hagel'! Hagel is the ONLY one of BOTH parties who wants to remove sanctions from Iran, Hagel wants to recognize Hamas & Hezbolah as non-terrorists, Hagel is NOT pro Israel. Remember......? When Obama told Putin's Rep. that after the election, he could be 'more flexible'..... China is building a massive Navy, while Obama wants to diminish ours! How's that 'Hope & Change' working out, my fellow Americans?!
Fine. If you don't know how to say "thank you" to the soldiers, then you go there and fight. Smarter people who owe you nothing will come home to their families
The mission was to find bin Laden and kill him. Mission accomplished. He wasn't in Afghanistan, anyway. Neither is al Qaeda, anymore. They're in Pakistan.
You could put the entire US military in Afghanistan right now, and accomplish nothing.
I am very thankful for our brave men and women who are putting their lives in harms way and sacrificing for America and for the free world. Most soldiers understand the threats humanity faces and understand that we must keep our resolve in the face of evil. An evil that wants to destroy America. We will not allow Afghanistan to become another safehaven for terror. We will not allow the Afghan women to start being stoned to death again. We stand for our universal principles of humanity and freedom. I sure do miss President George W. Bush's moral courage and soundness.
Who's "we"? Lots of cheap talk, there. You and whoever else in that "we" group ought to pool your bank accounts, because somebody's going to have to pay for all that rockin' sockin' action. Somebody's going to have to take a bullet to back up those words.
Might as well be you.
Our nation is broke, bordering on bankruptcy. The main expenditure that can be cut is military spending. Defense spending is safe. But these wars have to end, our troops need to come home, and we need to close bases worldwide before the dollar is fiat currency to everyone around the globe. BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!
All roads to peace in Afghanistan run through resolution of Indian Occupied Kashmir problem. No tickee no washee.
Begone, Paki. Aren't you tired of losing every war you started? Don't you wish there was still an East Pakistan?
Were all of Kashmir handed over to the Pakis, they would find another reason to agitate. They are led by the army, and the army needs a reason to exist. If not for sending terrorists to India, the generals would have to give back all that whiskey and find honest jobs.
I concur with your insights, Bhuvana.
withdraw our guys. let the afghan flooded with terrorists then we nuke them first!! dont even waste our taxpayer money on drones for these cows.
You have the mentality of a disgusting imbecile.
Sorry, I can't see the justification of nuking Afghanistan.
I agree. Nuke Afghanistan. I think it can be done with 25-30 Hiroshima size bombs. It would be important to completely lay to waste the country side first, then let all of the Afghans run to the city centers which could then be easily destroyed ensuring maximum kill with lowest yield.
"ZERO" is a great number. Why can't we do is is 2013? The sonner it goes to zero the better
about time... long time coming
HAHAHAHAHA. Thanks CNN. I've had a bad day and needed a good laugh.
No surprise here.
Obama fled Iraq. Now he wants to flee Afganistan.
Then you go over and fight them, and stop stealing my money and kids to send over there.
Conservatives don't fight; they are all Yellow.
Being there is just another excuse for them to kill more of vus,lets get out even the Russians were smart enough to leave HELL.
yeah cuz being in a pointless war effort is cool? blowing all kinds of lives and money is a good thing? man there some really stupid people in this country..
Tell me how you feel when Al Quada re-groups and lobs a nuke in your neighborhood.
Saying Obama fled both is like saying we vets of the wars fled both. If you are one of us vets you should know better and if you are not a vet keep your comments to yourself about things you know nothing about
Both were Loosing wars. Both were fought for NOTHING! This had nothing to do with terrorism. Once we leave Afghanistan, the Taliban will come back to power, and all those who fought there will have done so in vein! Fools make our foreign policy decisions. Bush Jr, Obama, Clinton, Carter,and Bush Sr. Not the brightest in our foreign policies.
@ yellow
Seriously?? What a jerk! I have a kid in the Army, what's your ante??
Iraq is more or less stable after our departure. A surprise to me. Let's hope that's the case in Afghanistan. The alternative would not be good.
Stupid, why won't you go there and fight the war yourself. hope you have no sons, daughters , or relatives there who are sacrificing their lives so you can enjoy to breath your freedom. You have the most stupid comment here.
Why wait, bring em home NOW!
I only wish our troops could come home now. Afghanistan brings back all the bad memories of the Vietnam war.
Unlike Vietnam, bad things will happen within the US when the Taliban & Al Quada take over the country. Are you OK with another 9/11?
bring them home now and let all the talibans and al-qaeda rerun the country and then we can bomb all of them with our guided missiles or even nuke them to erase them from the face of the earth.
Out Now! Karzai has had ten years to get his act together. If he can't stand on his own two feet now, he doesn't deserve our support. If he quits whining and complaining about us, we can keep supplying his for a couple years after we leave, but if he doesn't STFU, leave him standing there in the dust of our departing vehicles.
Karzai is corrupt and needs to go.
the talibans will hang him when the US troops leave.
to be honest, until Pakistan takes care of that tribal region just across the boarder, Afghanistan will always be a potential safe haven for terrorist groups.
If indeed this is plan why not just pull them all out now. If there is no long range mission why wait two more years and how many more wasted lives? That is so sad. So many lives have been lost already. So many have been maimed. The objectives of catching and killing known terrorists has been met over and over again. Use drones. Civilization is at a standstill there and that is how the people want it. Leave them to their own devices, they do a good enough job of killing each other. My son served two tours there and still nothing has changed.
Money. They probably want you to BELIEVE this, then they will come up with some sort of excuse why they abandoned the idea.
Why wait?
Amen
Amen to that Amen.
Troops may come back. Drones must stay.
OK, we'll send YOU the bill too.
It's about time!
It's about time before the end of 2014 and time to be completely out.
Get our guys out of there! The last thing we need or can afford is an occupation force. We always have the option to respond to any crisis in the world on a moments notice, because our military is that good. A moderate shift in our over all foreign policy would free up quite a bit of pressure on our national defense and hey....We might even be able to save a few dollars in the process! There's a novel idea!
Please bring all our children home now.
Agreed. But the people here that have no kids don't have a problem in sacraficing OUR kids.
Agreed
I think Feb 2013 sounds better
If we can use drones in Pakistan, we could use them in Afghanistan.
They are jackwagon!
What do you mean IF? We use them over YOUR HOUSE. Why wouldn't we over there?
Sweet. Nice to see the US Govt is on par with what its people want. Only 5 years too late.
Yeah, because those "people" you refer to know anything about it.
Wanna try me? A veteran?