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Afghanistan
Scuttling of the near-certain Afghan peace accord
2019-09-13
Near certain? Pakistan is spinning backwards awfully hard in the hope that someone actually believes them.
[DAWN] JUST days before the 9/11 anniversary, when more than anyone else Afghans pinned their hopes on a near-certain peace agreement between the United States and the Taliban
...Arabic for students...
to bring the longest war in the US history to an end, President Donald Trump
...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party...
’s irascible temperament came in the way.
Posted by:Fred

#9  The Afghan Taliban, however, say they had agreed to a ’partial ceasefire’ limited to the foreign forces in Afghanistan

Pretty obvious to me what they mean in, "We'll stop shooting at Americans if you leave, then we'll continue our war."
Posted by: Bobby   2019-09-13 16:31  

#8  Put some Pakistani politicians on the drone list and they'll come around. So far they've been immune to any punishment for their actions. I'm comfortable with changing that. I'll let Taliban decide but since Pakistan often gives marching orders to Taliban...)
Posted by: ruprecht   2019-09-13 15:01  

#7  What Dron said (thank you - astute as always).

Pakistan delenda est.
Posted by: Lex   2019-09-13 14:44  

#6  To really hurt the taliban, you'll have to engage in war with the 'Stain. Really engage. They just won't sit idle for a day those bastards, even if the FATF denies them any more aid. They'll cannibalize their infrastructure to support the turbans if need be.

Pakistan desires to posture as the peacemaker while actually plotting the wastage of another $trillion by the US on this. They are committed to the taliban surviving (not ruling, mind you). Their earlier regimes wanted the taliban to remain in the region, as disparate war-groups, a chaos in motion. They were muscle for the internecine rivalries in the tribal areas and a source of moolah from the drug trade. The latest regime was advised by the chinks to tread cautiously, forego the quickie and invest for the long game. I don't know what china hopes to gain and how, or where it stands on this. The talk in Delhi is that China, like Pakistain just wants the US to waste their money, but I find that too simplistic an assessment.

The current regime in Pakistain views the taliban as the legitimate pashtun representation, although they stop short at talk of an emirate. A section of Pak intelligence and militant mullahs also suggest a centralized taliban directorate in Afghanistan, with a weakened prop democracy like Pak's. An islamic alliance and an eastern mujaheddin force for the subcontinent.

Taliban recruits and trainers currently populate much of the tribal outlying areas on the durand line, robbing and raping the locals at whim. There's trade in local tribal children with regular bazaars and bids. Tribal resentment and rebellions like the PTM raised by local pashtuns against sasquatch militarization of their regions are actively targeted by the Pak army as anti-nationalism.

In any decisive war against taliban, if you don't hit Pakistain, they will keep regrouping and coming back. When the IS-Khorasan wanted to hit the taliban to make their statement, they know exactly where to hit. They hit Pakistain.
Posted by: Dron66046   2019-09-13 14:39  

#5  I am willing to let the Taliban decide. So in my opinion they would be the warmongers...
Posted by: ruprecht   2019-09-13 13:54  

#4  Careful! Our Agitprop Macro Commie Symp Herb will call you a NeoCon Warmonger for not surrendering unilaterally with a tail-between-the-legs retreat
Posted by: Frank G   2019-09-13 13:46  

#3  Also if a few Pakistan border cities that cooperate with the Taliban get flatted, well I'm cool with that as well.
Posted by: ruprecht   2019-09-13 13:16  

#2  Don't care how long the war has been. Don't really care how much it cost. I do care about US military forces getting injured or killed.

All of that equals peace on our terms or Rolling Thunder, I don't particularly care which and I'm happy to let the Taliban decide.
Posted by: ruprecht   2019-09-13 13:15  

#1  Killing US troops is not how you get America to the table. The Taliban do not want peace, they want the US to surrender, and Trump will not. I do believe its time to send a few days of B52's to darken the skies and scorch the earth. I think they will get the point then.
Posted by: 49 Pan   2019-09-13 12:08  

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