"The evolving face of the US mission in Afghanistan"
Summary:
Lieutenant Colonel Keith Benedict and Private First Class Brennen Bledsoe are two of the soldiers participating in the 17 year long war taking place in Afghanistan. Benedict is on his fifth deployment and proud to be defending his country. Benedict states, “I think the fact that we have not had an attack in the United States since 2001 is testament to the fact that what we are doing here is working, and I am committed to doing everything I can while I am on the ground here to achieving that.” The soldiers in Afghanistan symbolize the US mission; counterterrorism, building and refining the Afghan army, and defeating the Taliban.
The American army isn’t just helping to fight side by side with the Afghan troops, but rather train them. In 2013, the Afghan troops took over the army America started. But recently, the White House ordered the Pentagon to create plans to reduce American military present in Afghanistan by fifty percent.
CNN met with General Scott Miller, the Commander of the Resolute Support Mission, who is in charge of directing and training the Afghan National Army. Miller is responsible for the potential cut in military. His reasoning is that he wants to make the army as effective and efficient as possible. Cutting troops also makes the American Afghan mission more cost effective, something the US has been attempting to do for a while. While a cut in American military would be beneficial in some aspects, it also raises the question if a smaller army will be able to effectively support the Afghan military and if other countries that are also helping in the war, and depending on American support, will pull out due to the decrease in forces.
Miller has confidence that the Afghan army will be able to deal with the cuts and stay as strong as ever. When asked about how the Afghan army would deal with reduced support, he replied, “We have the resources we need…The Afghans are in the lead in this fight...It’s their fight now.” Miller believes that there will be no great military victory to end the 17 year war at this point, but rather a political settlement.
In addition to the Taliban, American and Afghan troops are also trying to find a solution to ISIS. Recently, President Trump announced ISIS has been defeated and pulled troops from Syria. In response to Trump’s actions, Miller proclaimed, “This is ultimately about national interests not just for the United States, but it is vital national interest -- 9/11 terrorists groups came from here, and today there are other terrorist groups that could affect external to Afghanistan and the homeland.” Trump’s decision created an uproar of mostly negative response. The pulling of troops will limit the amount of power the US has in that region and ISIS could potentially get stronger as an effect.
Reaction:
While I believe there are definitely benefits to cutting the troops (cost saving, helps the Afghan’s gain more independence with their army, ect.), I’m worried about how this will affect Afghanistan in the long run. Currently, there is a 17 year battle going on between Afghanistan and the Taliban, neither getting too much closer to winning than the other, essentially creating a stalemate. Pulling so many troops could have a huge negative impact on the battle, possibly giving the Taliban a lead. Whether or not giving the Afghan army more indepence is valuable overall, it could take them a while to get used to the reduced man power, as well as doing things without as much American guidance, giving the Taliban just the break they need to get ahead. If the Taliban were to win the war, the rest of the world would be drastically affected, getting everyone else involved.
Connection:
The American creation of a military in Afghanistan to fight off the Taliban has some similarities to the Cold War. The war between Afghanistan and the Taliban has been going on for 17 years, both sides making little progress due to how they both continuously strengthen their armies at the same rate. This was seen in the Cold War when both the U.S. and the Soviet Union continuously built up tension as an effect of the constant building of stronger armies and warfare. If Afghanistan and the Taliban are to continuously build up their military (and therefore build up even more tension), the war could spread to a larger scale and eventually get the rest of the world involved. Additionally, Afghanistan's heavy reliance on America's help puts Afghanistan in a difficult position. In the Cold War, America used other colonies and countries to increase control which ended up backfiring and causing even more tension. By America removing some of their military support, Afghanistan could be severely affected. Although it's beneficial in the sense that there won't be even more military buildup, it also gives the Taliban a strong advantage.
Questions:
1. What effect could America suddenly pulling out half their support have on the wars going on in the Middle East currently (ISIS, Taliban, etc.)?
2. What impact will pulling American troops out of Afghanistan have on the rest of the world?
3. How will the cutting of troops affect Afghanistan in the long run? Do you think it will mess up Afghan/American relations?
3. How will the cutting of troops affect Afghanistan in the long run? Do you think it will mess up Afghan/American relations?
The U.S. is the worlds foremost military superpower. The support of U.S. troops is hopefully helping to secure Afghanistan and the surroundings area for the future. The presence of U.S. troops is important for something not mentioned, economic leverage within Afghanistan. The U.S. troops in Afghanistan allow the U.S. to be one of the first choices in natural resource trade with Afghanistan which helps both parties. Right now might be an especially bad time to pull out the troops. BBC calls Afghanistan "more dangerous than ever." U.S. troops are necessary to secure the area against ISIS and the Taliban and troops in the area could be helpful if the situation in the Kashmir gets worse after the terrorist attack. I think relations between Afghanistan and the U.S. will be hurt and the region will take much longer to return to peace. Furthermore, pulling out the troops could allow ISIS to grow stronger again. Ultimately, recalling the troops could have devastating long-term effects in the region.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-45507560
https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-administration-is-considering-substantial-afghan-troop-drawdown-11545341452
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-trump-idUSKCN1OJ2VN
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-announces-mattis-will-leave-as-defense-secretary-at-the-end-of-february/2018/12/20/e1a846ee-e147-11e8-ab2c-b31dcd53ca6b_story.html
https://www.apnews.com/bfd0869cc8a641849791fa32391457af
I did not touch point on the economic leverage created by the American troops in Afghanistan, but you make a very good point. In addition to the affect removing troops would have on the Afghan-Taliban war, the American economy could be greatly affected. Economywatch.com mentions “The fall on the Taliban forces in 2001 and infusion of billions of US dollars improved trading significantly. “ The U.S. is hugely involved with Afghanistan and taking out troops could severely affect the relations between them. I agree with you when you say that pulling the troops is a bad idea, potentially detrimental to the outcome of wars and the US economy. At the same time though, I still wonder if there are positives to the reduction of troops, as it will decrease the huge cost America is responsible for, not just money, but also human lives. I think that, bottom line, the troops should not be drastically cut, and if there are to still be cuts, to make them gradually and give Afghanistan time to make up for the loss of American troops by further strengthening their own.
Deletehttp://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/afghanistan/export-import.html\
Afghanistan is a very controversial and dangerous area at the moment for many different reasons. As stated in the article above, the US has been at war in this area for seventeen years losing the lives of 2,216 brave women and men along with 20,057 brave women and men being wounded in battle. (https://dod.defense.gov/News/Casualty-Status/) It is very clear that without US support in Afghanistan the Taliban along with ISIS will have an upper hand a chance to expand and become stronger. I believe that the US shouldn’t so abruptly pull out forces but slowly do so overtime while continuing to train Afghan forces. The US will only lose more and more brave soldiers as there doesn’t seem to be an immediate end to this war. The US should always be involved in Afghanistan but in a limited way still providing aid to Afghan troops to fight against ISIS and the Taliban. If US troops are pulled out too quickly and and there is not a set system in place to continue fighting than ISIS and the Taliban may have a chance to grow which can result in many terrible outcomes around the world such as more terrorist attacks. I feel that US and Afghan relations will continue to stay strong as long as the US continues to help in the fight. Helping can come in the terms of supplying weapons and other aid, not the lives of our own soldiers. In conclusion, I believe that there should always be US troops in Afghanistan but overtime the US should help in making the Afghan army stronger so we can slowly withdraw US troops from this war torn area.
ReplyDeleteAmerica’s extended involvement in Afghanistan has had a profound effect on the country itself. Unlike other recent conflicts, America has directly involved itself as opposed to merely sending aid. For the Afghans, they feel as if America is an invading force, and thus will have a greater incentive to join these extremist terrorist groups. Even if we “wipe out” the current Taliban, there ideals of the terrorist group will still be carried on by those angered by the US’s involvement in Afghanistan. If America wants to have less involvement in Afghanistan, we need to establish a stable government whose infrastructure is capable of supporting the country without American aid. However, this has proven to be difficult. Even with a democratically elected leader, Afghanistan lacks the stability to have an effective government, and thus has become extremely reliant on the US. Training their military to be independent is a good step in the right direction, as the military is crucial to controlling the country, as proven by Venezuela. If the US were to abruptly pull out of Afghanistan, it’s highly unlikely that the military could contain the Taliban, and Afghanistan would slip back into chaos.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Aaron’s belief that no matter what decision the US makes, the ideas and promotion of terrorism in this area and every will never truly disappear. I also believe that the US and other nations involved must look beyond war as a solution to this problem. This war has been going on for 18 years now- there are soliders fighting in the war that were born after the bombing of 9/11, which served as the US’s primary reason for joining. And even after the past 18 years of fighting, it seems as though nothing has changed; the Taliban actually holds more territory than before and is still adamently and fearlessly battling the Afghan government for control. The US’s main reason for remaining involved seems to be out of fear of another terrorist attack occuring on our soil, yet their involvement has not ceased these attacks from occur elsewhere across the globe. Continuing the fight has also killed at least 62,000 Afghan soliders and officers since 2001, as well as 24,000 civilians, just in the past decade. No one sees any end in sight for this conflict, therefore the US should stop wasting time arguing whether or not they should add or remove troops to the battle and turn their efforts towards a chance of peace and, as Aaron covered, making sure the Afghan government themselves are strong enough for whatever comes next.
Deletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/21/world/asia/afghanistan-war-explainer.html
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/19/its-time-to-end-americas-war-in-afghanistan
The effects that can be caused by withdrawing Half of the American troops in the war efforts could have a huge impact. With the presence of U.S. troops, pulling out half of the troops could have no impact as well. As American forces slowly moving the need for having more troops is unnecessary, and can cause more problems then good. So I think that it will have a good outcome. I think that the impact of pulling American troops out of Afghanistan we'll most likely have no impact on the rest of the world. As long as US troops are slowly pulled out, there will most likely be no complications. I think in the long run, that pulling American troops out of Afghanistan we give a chance for Afghanistan to improve the military and government structures. This will allow Afghanistan to adjust and fine tune any problems. A quote shows how things are going, '"I see progress everyday here on the ground,'Kough said". (https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/28/politics/afghanistan-scott-miller/index.html) This shows how problems in the middle east have gotten better, and the use of U.S. military are not needed.
ReplyDeleteAs the article mentioned, one of the biggest events that people believe gave rise to ISIS was Bush (Obama only followed through with this plan later on) pulling troops from Syria in 2011. This is a claim with very valid origins but ultimately incertain truth, as while the extra outside control of the area would have slowed down ISIS' growth, the religious divide between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims in the area that ultimately caused ISIS' growth had been going on for thousands of years and was far out of the US' control. The bigger problem was that without the US' influence, the Iraqi army rapidly deteriorated in that time due to poor management. The cutting of troops in Afghanistan could definitely have consequences that mirror those in Iraq, however the US will still be maintaining control over the area and training the Afghan military, not pulling out altogether. This could definitely curb some of the more extreme effects of what happened in Iraq and will definitely retain US influence in Afghanistan enough to maintain the growing military there.
ReplyDeleteSource: https://www.npr.org/2015/12/19/459850716/fact-check-did-obama-withdraw-from-iraq-too-soon-allowing-isis-to-grow
Although I do believe it is ideal that we eventually pull out of Afghanistan, I think it is very important that we are very careful in how we do it in order to keep good relations with Afghanistan. If we were to pull out to suddenly, we may be leaving the Afghan army unprepared to fight the Taliban. It is essential that we support the Afghan army in every way possible to put them in a position where they will be able to successfully counter terrorism and keep Afghanistan peaceful and unified. In regard to the second question, I do not think there will be consequences that affect the rest of the world. According to an article by The Heritage Foundation, "Our principal goal was to eliminate Afghanistan as a safe haven for terrorists to launch attacks against the U.S. In that endeavor, America has largely succeeded." Overall, It seems safe for the U.S. to pull out of Afghanistan, however I think as well, it is important to leave Afghanistan in good condition. Especially because the Middle East is already controversial with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I think that keeping good relations with Afghanistan could be as small step towards getting control over the Middle East. It isn't much, but it is honest work.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.heritage.org/middle-east/commentary/why-america-cannot-afford-pull-out-afghanistan
The US Army was created in 1776 to defend America from its enemies. It looks like America is losing more than it is gaining from fighting in Afghanistan. The Taliban now control 70% of Afghanistan. Afghanistan is a war with no end in sight- young Afghans still join the Taliban, and if Afghans won't come together to save their own country, we cannot do it for them, no matter how much money or how many troops we expend on it. The Afghan National Guard, which the US spends so much on, is continuously being defeated by the Taliban. The fighting in Afghanistan is costing thousands of American lives and billions of dollars from the American people. It is time for the US to slowly pull out of Afghanistan.
ReplyDeleteThe US's involvement in Afghanistan has been long standing. Thus pulling out too fast or in a rash way could cause many problems. Although I do believe it is the right decision, if it is done in a chaotic fashion it would not help anyone. The US must be careful when planning to take such large action, as Afghanistan is still quite unstable. With neither the Afghans or the Taliban substantially stronger, when left to their own devices, the effect could be detrimental. The plan to withdraw about half of the 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, "has raised concerns about whether a smaller force would be able to support the Afghan military and whether other European armies that rely on American helicopters and other support would pull out. It also raises questions around the size of a US counterterrorism force that might be able to remain in the country."(www.aljazeera.com) All these concerns should be considered, the US's involvement plays such a key role in the area it definitely has an effect. Thus, the US should plan to exit Afghanistan, but only in a way that is carefully planned to cause least destruction in the area.
ReplyDeleteThe possible impact of the withdrawal of half of the US military during the war could have a massive crucial impact. With the advent of the US military, the withdrawal of half of the troops has no effect. With the slow movement of the US military, there is no need to increase the number of troops and it may cause more problems. So I think it will have a good result. I think the impact of driving the US troops out of Afghanistan is likely to have no impact on the rest of the world. As long as the US military slowly withdraws, there is likely to be no complications. I believe that in the long run, the US military will be driven out of Afghanistan, and we have the opportunity to improve the military and government structure in Afghanistan. This will enable Afghanistan to adjust and fine tune any issues. This shows how the Middle East problem can be better without the need to use the US military.
ReplyDeleteThe US has been entangled with Afghanistan for a long time, so a sudden removal of troops would most likely be a difficult adjustment. However, if they were to slowly take the troops out, the effect would be less staggering. It would perhaps effect the countries in the area but not so much the rest of the world. Perhaps other countries would see it as a message that America is giving up or doesn't care any more.
ReplyDeleteMessed something up but this is my comment
DeleteI’m of two minds about conflict in Afghanistan. There are definitely pros and cons to this argument; on the one hand, it is incredibly important for the US to support its allies. After all, the precise definition of an alliance is a “formal agreement between two or more states for mutual support in case of war” (https://www.britannica.com/topic/alliance-politics). On the other hand, it is also pertinent that the US give Afghanistan agency and responsibility for its internal affairs. As mentioned in both the summary and the article, the US’s role in Afghanistan’s conflict has evolved over the past 17 years-- we’ve moved towards a position of military mentorship almost exclusively from being simply a fighting force, which I believe is a step in the right direction. Like Natalie was saying in an above comment, I think the US’s ultimate goal in Afghanistan should be as complete a reduction of troops as possible, but in a manner that is neither rash nor chaotic. The Taliban has demanded that all foreign troops exit the war (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-talks/taliban-reject-trumps-suggestion-of-lingering-u-s-counter-terrorism-presence-idUSKCN1PV16P), so the US would need to withdraw its troops in such a way that the Taliban would not be able to take advantage of that withdrawal. In response to the first question posed by the post author: if the US suddenly pulled even half of its current troops from Afghanistan, political and/or terrorist groups (in the eyes of the US, the Taliban is not a terrorist organization: https://www.voanews.com/a/afghan-taliban-us-list-foreign-terror-groups/3732453.html) might have an easier time gaining control in the regions where US forces were stationed. However, returning to my original two sides of this argument, saying this implies that Afghanistan doesn’t have the means to build itself back up from conflict-- but is this true?
ReplyDeleteI think the effect America suddenly pulling half of their support in the Middle East will create a power vacuum for other groups to control the area. The rejuvenation of terrorist groups or sovereign nations militaries could potentially rule the area. The impact of pulling American troops out of Afghanistan, in the long run, would mean that the Afghanistan army would maybe have less guidance or maybe they get to tackle the problem themselves and succeed better than they ever have. Honestly, I think it depends because if Afghanistan does not need the American troops, then relations will not get affected. However, if they need do need the troops, then it might potentially ruin relations between both countries.
ReplyDeleteNina Wade- The US has a strong military that has provided immense support for the Afghanistan army. Although the 17 year long war has proved to be at a slight standstill, pulling American troops out could be detrimental. This introduces a huge risk of giving the Taliban easier access to a lead. If the Taliban were to win the war, it would negatively affect the whole world. The terrorist group would have a huge boost in power that would be extremely dangerous for countries in their area, as well as bigger targets such as the US- whom they obviously see as an enemy. This also may give other terrorist groups such as ISIS, etc. ideas concerning violent acts. The chances of success for the Afghanistan army are greatly increased with the backing of the strength of the US army. Pulling American troops could also potentially harm relations with Afghanistan as well as reputation with other countries. All in all, pulling American troops from Afghanistan would not be a smart idea.
ReplyDeleteKayla Shiao: I think the short term effects of the US military deductions will eventually benefit the Afghan army. The transition from battling terrorists with the help of the country that has the largest military spending in the world to having half the amount of help as before may have a large affect on the morale and ability of the army. This may create some tensions between the governments, because the US went into Afghanistan and wrecked havoc on their homeland, then left them when they may not have been ready. Though, in the long run, I think the lessening of US troops will not have much affect because there are still troops there. If tensions happen to escalate, 50% of the original troops are still there, which will make it easier to defend while additional troops arrive to the war zone. So, in the long run, I don't think the effects of removing some US troops will be too damaging to the Afghan army.
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ReplyDeleteI think that the U.S. Government choosing to withdrawal half of their forces from the war going on in Afghanistan is a mistake. I think that even with the special training for the Afghan army by the U.S. it will still not be able to be enough to replace the strength/presence of U.S. troops. Taking out half of the U.S. forces will allow the Taliban to regroup, and to regain more strength which will affect the Middle East in a very negative way. Pulling out troops won't just affect the Middle East but the world as a whole. The pulling out of troops will allow the Taliban to gain strength and possibly carry out more terrorist attacks in such places as Europe, Asia, etc. The cutting of troops will effect Afghanistan negatively because there will be less structure and order which will possibly create chaos.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2018/12/21/us-troop-withdrawal-from-afghanistan-
The U.S. government withdrawing forces from Afghanistan will simply be asking for NGO's to attack and take over Afghanistan. The U.S. has the most powerful military force out of any nation, and not using it for the betterment of our and other nations is the most illogical thing anyone could ever think of. Now more than ever Afghanistan needs the U.S.'s support, because of the threat of takeover by ISIS. Giving NGO's control over Afghanistan will make it even more difficult for us to take out these NGO's and the threat that they hold. The whole world could be pulled into a war with ISIS and other terror organizations if they get control of Afghanistan. Even if Afghanistan is able to survive the brutal attacks made by terror organizations, the U.S. will have a strained relationship with Afghanistan; The U.S. withdrawing support to Afghanistan portrays America as a selfish and untrustworthy nation.
ReplyDeleteThere are many effects of Americas withdrawal of their support on the Middle East. Their withdrawal could lead to ISIS advancing and in turn, negatively affecting Afghanistan. The support of the US will still be there, but the Afghan army will only have training from the US army that may not be enough to help protect their country against terrorist attacks. Since the terrorist groups (ex. ISIS) will have this time to reorganize, this could lead to them becoming more strengthened and able to fight bigger countries like the United States. I believe that the cutting of the troops will not effect the Afghan/American relations due to the American support that is still going to be given from the US.
ReplyDeleteThe US has helped immensely out to the Afghanistan Army. I think the effect America suddenly pulling half of their support in the Middle East will create control, while also causing harm. This can increase the chance of the Taliban leading. This would lead to a boost in power and can be detrimental for surrounding areas. The Chances of success for the Afghanistan army are greatly increased with the help from the US army. In conclusion, I believe that pulling Us troops will cause damage.
ReplyDeleteThe U.S. withdrawal of 50% of it military could have many disastrous effects for the U.S. and many other countries around the world. The sudden news could sprout new terrorist organizations to spread their extremism across the U.S. such as ISIS. However the U.S. has only a small amount of troops stationed in Afghanistan (14,000). Many predicted the similar reaction that global terriosm would spread again when a majority of U.S. combat troops left Afghanistan in 2014. However there predictions were wrong the Afghanistan army defended their country with little change. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/afghan-government-puts-brave-face-on-us-withdrawal-but-experts-alarmed/2018/12/21/6f17dc94-0504-11e9-9122-82e98f91ee6f_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.a531d7f61757) In the long end I believe the U.S. and afghanistan will maintain there friendly relations. This withdrawal could also have many positive effects for Afghanistan in leading them towards a stronger independent military that is capable of handling domestic problems.
ReplyDeleteI feel that there are many possible outcomes if the U.S. were to withdrawl their troops. One outcome that stands out to me is that it could ultimately leave the Afghanistan’s military vulnerable in that region. The Taliban has proved that they are very strategic and could possibly take advantage of this “opportunity.” Although, there are some benefits, it’s very hard to encourage the withdrawl when there are threatening outcomes that lie on the surface of this situation. Extremists/ Terrorists groups could easily take this as an oppurtunity to hurt the Afghanistan’s military while it’s not as stable and lacks support. This may build some independence for their military, but could also just as well hurt them and spread more terror.
DeleteThe sudden void of US troops in Afghanistan would definitely cause chaos and be a mistake. The US military is very strong and no amount of training can duplicate that presence. This won't go unnoticed by ISIS, other groups, and US enemies which may try to take advantage of this situation. Ultimately the US would go back in, in effort to undo the damage. At the same time America needs to support itself, so I do think the troops need to eventually come out. Another country as well can't always rely on support from another. The Afghani troops need proper long term training before they can be left to face Taliban. An article in the New York Time’s voices the same concern (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/us/politics/afghanistan-troop-withdrawal.html) on whether if not Afganistan can keep down the fort against Taliban.
ReplyDeleteLike others have said, America being included in the fight against extremist groups is a huge factor. From what's said in the article, it sounds as if things in their current situation are doing well with the mention of progress a couple of times. With the abrupt removal of half of their force, such a sudden shift should come with sudden results meaning less manpower for operations to allow this progress to happen. Even as Afghan forces lead the fight, that still means there are less US troops that will train them leading to a disadvantage in that aspect as well. On a global scale, this potential risk of giving a opportunity to the rise of other extremist groups, which can pop up at any moment, puts nearby countries in europe, the middle east, asia, or africa at even more risk. I do not think that pulling out troops in Afghanistan will affect relations too much as we've been fighting the war alongside them for 17 years. With so much time to allow camaraderie to foster and to have it broken so easily after everything that's been done in support would seem irrational.
ReplyDeleteI think that the US leaving the conflict would have to happen at some point in order to give the area a chance to independently resolve their issues. I'm not completely sure that right now would be the best time as the presence of terrorist groups is still pretty strong. I believe the best course of action would be to increase military presence and eradicate this problem before leaving completely. It would have been better if this was the original approach because then we wouldn't have wasted so much time, effort, and lives to solve the problem. This approach could prove ineffective however, due to the hidden nature of these groups. Effects of pulling troops out of the area could affect the rest of the world by increasing terrorism by loosening our control over them. This in turn could increase the world's involvement in the matter which I think could be beneficial. Typically, it has been mostly America dealing with the problems in the area and if we start to balance out involvement, it could serve as a wake up call to other countries to step up their support. Americans have lost many lives and used lots of resources trying to help while some other world leaders only contributed minimally based on the amount of help they could stand to offer. I think that the US/Afghan relations wouldn't be heavily impacted especially because of the significant amount of help we have already contributed. The US can't just stay there forever to help them and I believe they realize that too. To me, there really isn't an ideal solution for this situation because of the difficult situation. These organizations must be stopped and kept that way completely otherwise they will just rebuild secretly until they pop up again. The difficulty lies in the fact that they are spread out and hidden within normal cities and people so it is hard to figure out who is hostile and who is not. All in all, the whole conflict is very complicated because of the causes of the terrorist groups and the tactics that they employ to cause major hysteria.
ReplyDeleteERIC LIU!!!
DeleteI think that the US withdrawing half of their forces would have a major impact on the Middle East. As the article and your summary said, the US not only aided troops, but trained the Afghan forces as well. The US forces have advanced technology and a strong team to train forces in the Middle East, so their teams are very helpful in that area and are needed for the success in Afghanistan and such. Also, in the article, Colonel Kris Kough states that "I see progress everyday here on the ground... we have seen the Afghan army make some amazing progress." His statement highlights the impact the US military has on the progress and success of the Afghan forces and shows how much they are needed in the Middle East. While I think it is important for the forces in the Middle East to fight for themselves and gain some independence in the military and advance, I believe that the Afghan forces and in the Middle East could only benefit from the aid of the US military teams and could aid in their strength. As mentioned above, the US withdrawal could have some disadvantages in the Afghan forces and show vulnerability, which ISIS and other terrorist groups would notice and take advantage of. Overall, I think the US withdrawing half of their forces would have a negative impact on the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteI think that Afghani forces want and deserve their freedom from the U.S. troops and/or military presence their. The United States has usually never been asked to act in ways like these with Arab nations and other places surrounding the Middle East (Afghanistan in this case not being considered Arab because it is not predominantly) and have [The U.S.] has always forced their military presence upon them. While clearly this proved beneficial to the U.S. and improved the economy significantly, I think that it's time for the US to pull out their military presence. The common meddling-in-affairs that America does so much is a dangerous activity that I think quite easily makes America that more of a complex and controversial country.
ReplyDeleteI think that if America were to suddenly pull out their support from the Afghanistan army, they might give the Talibans a lead, because after all, America is their guidance and trainers, and without them, Afghanistan troops may become lost and unused to the lack of manpower. According to NYtimes.com (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/us/politics/afghanistan-troop-withdrawal.html), the Afghanistan officials aren’t prepared and claimed that they weren’t briefed about this situation. I believe that without American control in the area, conflict and terrorism can spread just as ISIS did. Even though this decision may benefit the US financially, but foreign relations may be devastatingly affected, especially between Afghanistan and the US.
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