"Karzai, in Washington visit, to detail complaints; Afghan security, corruption likely discussion topics" by Kevin Sieff | Washington Post, January 07, 2013
KABUL — When Afghan President Hamid Karzai visits Washington this week, he will bring with him a list of complaints he has enumerated for months in public speeches — accusations that the United States has fomented corruption in Afghanistan and continues to violate the country’s sovereignty.
Karzai’s top advisers say he has been forced to go public with that critique because meetings with US officials here have yielded no progress on the issues he values most. Now he’ll share the list of grievances with an American president in the midst of disentangling the US military from its longest war.
The prospect of a diminished US presence in Afghanistan has not dulled the tone of Karzai’s critique, even though he claims to want a long-term American security footprint here. That footprint would be welcomed, his advisers say, but only if it is accompanied by concessions on a number of seemingly intractable issues.
‘‘The world needs us more than we need them,’’ said Abdul Karim Khurram, Karzai’s chief of staff.
Karzai wants US officials to stop approving contracts ‘‘with warlords who use the money for their own gains,’’ according to his spokesman, Aimal Faizi. Karzai said in a speech last month that corruption is ‘‘imposed on us, and it is meant to weaken our system’’ — an assertion roundly rejected by US officials in Afghanistan.
Karzai wants a full handover of the Parwan military prison, which US officials approved last year but later rescinded, saying it appeared that Afghan officials were planning to release a slew of suspected terrorists.
They just cut off Karzai's right foot.
They just cut off Karzai's right foot.
He also wants a stronger Afghan air force, an end to US military operations in villages and a guarantee that his country will be protected from cross-border incursions, particularly by Pakistan-based insurgents.
Those pledges, too, will be hard to secure.
As Karzai presses those demands, he and his advisers have extended their critique to the larger legacy of the United States and NATO in Afghanistan, which they say have failed to deliver security, despite the billions spent.
‘‘The war has been fought in a very incorrect manner. . . . It didn’t improve the situation, but it worsened it,’’ Khurram said.
Officials in Washington said they plan to consult with Karzai on the size and character of the US mission beyond 2014. They will also press him on his commitment to improving transparency and governance.
In addition to meeting with President Obama, Karzai is scheduled to give a speech at George Washington University.
After narrowing down potential topics, one that remained on the table is ‘‘the things which have gone wrong and which we could have done differently,’’ according to an Afghan official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the speech.
Karzai has addressed the topic several times from his palace in Kabul, leading some US officials to believe that the invectives it typically entails were intended to satisfy a domestic audience, not to inspire action by Afghanistan’s international partners. In Washington, a Karzai speech aimed at American failings would probably be received differently.
That's where "politicians and generals conspire to declare the campaign a success," in the intensifying propaganda war (Chechen AL-CIA-Duh in Afghanistan now?), but I wouldn't worry because the endgame (everyone agrees) will "illustrate continued foreign support" to the tune of $8 billion a year.
That's where "politicians and generals conspire to declare the campaign a success," in the intensifying propaganda war (Chechen AL-CIA-Duh in Afghanistan now?), but I wouldn't worry because the endgame (everyone agrees) will "illustrate continued foreign support" to the tune of $8 billion a year.
"Obama to hasten Afghan transfer; US will cede the lead role early next year; Withdrawal of troops still planned for 2014" by Matt Viser and Bryan Bender | Globe Staff, January 11, 2013
WASHINGTON — President Obama said Friday that US troops would hand over security control to Afghan forces sooner than previously announced and he placed new hope in a negotiated settlement with the Taliban after more than a decade of war.
I used to have hope for peace talks when I read it in a war paper, but that seems like another lifetime now.
In a joint press conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in the East Room of the White House, the presidents of two nations linked by war said the mission in Afghanistan was reaching a turning point.
If it is not about face, forward march then I don't want to hear it.
The two leaders, who have clashed in the past, presented a common front in saying that Afghan forces were making enough progress to transfer more authority to them — and potentially accelerate a drawdown of US troops over the next two years....
I used to have hope for peace talks when I read it in a war paper, but that seems like another lifetime now.
In a joint press conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in the East Room of the White House, the presidents of two nations linked by war said the mission in Afghanistan was reaching a turning point.
If it is not about face, forward march then I don't want to hear it.
The two leaders, who have clashed in the past, presented a common front in saying that Afghan forces were making enough progress to transfer more authority to them — and potentially accelerate a drawdown of US troops over the next two years....
Still....
In addition to taking over greater control of combat operations, Karzai said the United States would also “soon” be turning over control of detention centers and detainees to Afghanistan, which had been one sticking point.
The United States also reaffirmed that it does not seek to have permanent bases in Afghanistan, and Karzai outlined plans for democratic elections in 2014. Karzai — who took control of the country in the months after the Sept 11, 2001 attacks — said he will not run for reelection....
But will take 'em if offered!
But will take 'em if offered!
That plan, however, hinges on the ability of newly trained Afghan security forces to take over the fight against Taliban insurgents, who are still attacking the government from strongholds in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.
Related: Officials say Afghans not ready for war with Taliban
Related: Officials say Afghans not ready for war with Taliban
But progress is being made. How often have we heard that tag line the last 12 years?
In a joint statement, Obama and Karzai said that Afghan forces now lead about 80 percent of the country’s security operations. By February, after another round of transfers, the Afghanistan forces will have the lead in securing nearly 90 percent of the country’s population. The plan “is working, and we’re fully committed to finishing the job,” Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta told reporters at the Pentagon Thursday.
Yeah, forget about the 100 dead a week, it's all such a success!
In a joint statement, Obama and Karzai said that Afghan forces now lead about 80 percent of the country’s security operations. By February, after another round of transfers, the Afghanistan forces will have the lead in securing nearly 90 percent of the country’s population. The plan “is working, and we’re fully committed to finishing the job,” Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta told reporters at the Pentagon Thursday.
Yeah, forget about the 100 dead a week, it's all such a success!
Critics said the United States should be wary of transferring control too quickly to an Afghan military that has limited resources and to a government that even Karzai conceded on Friday was still struggling with corruption. A six-month Pentagon assessment released last month found that even while Afghanistan is taking the lead in routine patrols, only one out of the Afghan Army’s 23 brigades was able to operate without US or NATO support.
Meaning despite all the talk of mission completed, war over, and withdrawal, we are going to be there a long, long time.
Meaning despite all the talk of mission completed, war over, and withdrawal, we are going to be there a long, long time.
Others want a quicker pullout. “What is it we are going to accomplish by fighting through the spring?” asked Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel L. Davis, an Afghan veteran who published a scathing assessment of US strategy last year. “What are we going to sacrifice American lives for that you couldn’t accomplish by transitioning [to the Afghans] next Wednesday?”
See: Long Forgotten Afghanistan Post
See: Long Forgotten Afghanistan Post
Although more control is being handed over to Afghanistan, Obama warned on Friday that US troops would still be engaged in battle, just with Afghan commanders in charge.
Afghans in charge of US troops?
Afghans in charge of US troops?
Top officials in Washington and Kabul have yet to determine how many US forces might stay behind in Afghanistan after 2014 to train and support the Afghans. The options being considered by the White House range from none to up to 10,000 or more.
“It’ll depend on the conditions,” Army General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday, adding the size of the remaining force will rely heavily on recommendations from commanders on the ground, both American and Afghan.
“We react to requests to this — a certain set of parameters,” Dempsey said. “What’s the mission? What’s the requirement to protect the force while it’s accomplishing that mission? Over what period of time?”
Is the war over because I was told it is.
Is the war over because I was told it is.
Obama said that if troops are left behind, they would need to be granted legal immunity, something that Karzai said he would seek approval for in Afghanistan. Such immunity is standard practice when American troops are deployed overseas, preventing US forces from being prosecuted under local laws. Obama pulled forces out of Iraq in 2011, earlier than planned, because that country’s Parliament would not grant them immunity.
The empire needs to be above the law because it is a criminal enterprise.
The empire needs to be above the law because it is a criminal enterprise.
The United States has been anxious to support a negotiated settlement with Taliban leaders in Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, after more than a year of fits and starts, the Taliban closed off a diplomatic channel to Washington in March. A major sticking point had been overthe terms ofa proposed prisoner exchange involving members of the Taliban being held at the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and US Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, who has been held prisoner by militants in Pakistan since 2009....
Please read: Sunday Globe Censorship: Abducted American Video a False-Flag Fake
That is becoming the rule rather than the exception when it comes to AmeriKa's media.
Please read: Sunday Globe Censorship: Abducted American Video a False-Flag Fake
That is becoming the rule rather than the exception when it comes to AmeriKa's media.
As of Friday, 2,174 US troops have died in Afghanistan since US forces toppled the Taliban in 2001 for providing a safe haven to Al Qaeda terrorists who attacked the United States, according to icasualties.org, which compiles Pentagon statistics and public reports.
I once cared, but the war has gone on so long with the lies now being so well-known that I'm filled with indifference. I'm sorry for the families and their loss, but their loved ones should never have been over there in the first place. I've reached a point where I care more about the victims of endless war crimes than the tools used to carry them out. Yeah, I want vets to get all they are entitled to with compensation and care; however, I didn't put them in those situations with humongous lies blared from front pages.
On Friday, Obama said US forces are now on the path to concluding their mission.
I once cared, but the war has gone on so long with the lies now being so well-known that I'm filled with indifference. I'm sorry for the families and their loss, but their loved ones should never have been over there in the first place. I've reached a point where I care more about the victims of endless war crimes than the tools used to carry them out. Yeah, I want vets to get all they are entitled to with compensation and care; however, I didn't put them in those situations with humongous lies blared from front pages.
On Friday, Obama said US forces are now on the path to concluding their mission.
“We achieved our central goal, which is — or have come very close to achieving our central goal — which is to de-capacitate Al Qaeda; to dismantle them; to make sure that they can’t attack us again,” he said. “And at the end of this conflict, we are going to be able to say that the sacrifices that were made by those men and women in uniform has brought about the goal that we sought.”
That is so disgusting.
The president added, however: “Have we achieved everything that some might have imagined us achieving in the best of scenarios? Probably not. This is a human enterprise and you fall short of the ideal.”
But all in all the destruction and death were well worth it!
But all in all the destruction and death were well worth it!
--more--"
That is where I called it quits with the coverage. I'm sick of shit-fooleys passing as news.
That is where I called it quits with the coverage. I'm sick of shit-fooleys passing as news.
