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News archives for the week ending 6th November 2009

Sharp increase in opposition to war

Opposition to the war in Afghanistan has risen sharply in the past fortnight. Two weeks ago, 42 per cent of the British public thought the Taliban could be defeated, while 48 per cent thought they could not.

Now, following the deaths of five British soldiers yesterday and President Karzi's much-challenged victory in the recent election, just 33 per cent think the war can be won, while a clear majority, 57 per cent think victory is no longer possible.

As a result, 35 per cent now think all British troops should be withdrawn immediately – compared with 25 per cent two weeks ago. 73 per cent of people want troops to be withdrawn from Afghanistan immediately, or most withdrawn soon with the rest within the next year or so.

Channel 4 News, 5/11/09

UN pulls half of staff from Afghanistan

The United Nations today temporarily pulled half its international staff out of Afghanistan and threatened that a complete and permanent withdrawal could follow.

Amid an atmosphere of increasing gloom in Afghanistan, the UN Special Representative in Kabul, Kai Eide delivered a pointed warning to the government of Hamid Karzai.

“There is a belief among some, that the international community (presence) will continue whatever happens because of the strategic importance of Afghanistan,” he told a press conference this morning. “I would like to emphasise that that’s not true.”

He added that the Afghan government must demonstrate a willingness to reform and address corruption and the power of warlords.

The Times, 5/11/09

Pentagon expected to request more war funding

The nation’s top military officer said Wednesday that he expected the Pentagon to ask Congress in the next few months for emergency financing to support the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, even though President Obama has pledged to end the Bush administration practice of paying for the conflicts with so-called supplemental funds that are outside the normal Defense Department budget.

The financing would be on top of the $130 billion that Congress authorized for the wars just last month. The military officer, Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, did not say how much additional money would be needed, but one figure in circulation within the Pentagon and among outside defense budget analysts is $50 billion.

New York Times, 4/11/09

Minister: War in Afghanistan helps control immigration

A government minister was today accused of being "crass" after he claimed British troops were in Afghanistan to stop asylum seekers fleeing to the UK, hours after five more troops were killed. The immigration minister, Phil Woolas, made the remarks while giving evidence to MPs on the Commons home affairs committee.

"If this country and others were to withdraw their troops from Afghanistan and the Taliban were able to take control of Afghanistan our evidence is that the number of asylum seekers coming to the EU would significantly increase," Woolas told the committee.

"An argument that is not aired strongly enough in my view is the benefit of the presence of our armed forces and other countries' is to help us control immigration."

The government has tried to halt public disaffection with the war by saying it is aimed at stopping the Taliban regaining power, rebuilding Afghanistan and stopping it becoming a base for al-Qaida-inspired terrorist attacks against Britain and the west.

Guardian, 5/11/09

Ex-minister calls for withdrawal from Afghanistan

The government should withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, a former junior foreign minister said Wednesday, in a split with Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government over the drawn-out conflict.

Labour lawmaker Kim Howells, who chairs a security watchdog, said billions of pounds could be saved from a phased troop withdrawal and redirected to defending Britain's borders from attacks by Al-Qaeda.

"It would be better to bring home the great majority of our fighting men and women and concentrate, instead, on using the money saved to secure our own borders, (and) gather intelligence on terrorist activities inside Britain," he said

AFP, 4/11/09

US are complicit in Afghan corruption

Many U.S. officials, Western diplomats and other experts fear that Karzai will have to award positions in the central and provincial governments to unsavory figures, including regional militia leaders and power brokers who oversaw the massive ballot box-stuffing on his behalf, in return for backing his re-election.

Karzai "is too beholden to these types and he doesn't see it yet in his interest to remove them and start a clean government and be a genuine partner with the international community," said Rachel Reid, who monitors Afghanistan for U.S.-based Human Rights Watch.

"It's not enough to blame Karzai," Reid continued. "The U.S. and other major players in Afghanistan are complicit in this impunity culture. They have relationships with many of the most notorious former warlords, current criminals and militia leaders. They have high-level meetings with them, they use their armed gangs to guard their bases, they invite them to the White House. They, too, must clean up their act, or they don't have a leg to stand on when they come to tell Karzai to change his allegiances."

McClatchy Newspapers, 3/11/09

Afghanistan and the Saigon trap

To get out of Afghanistan will require that the Karzai government provide better services and be more responsive to popular demands than the Taliban shadow government that exists in much of the country.

But as General Stanley McChrystal noted in his report, the Karzai government has been top-down, unresponsive to popular needs and unengaged with traditional tribal governance structures. By contrast, the Taliban shadow government, however brutal, is at least efficient and connected to local governance structures where it operates. The US and UK are struggling in Afghanistan not just because the Taliban have ratcheted up the tempo of their attacks but also because the Karzai government is being outperformed by the Taliban in the provision of some government services.

To turn the tide in Afghanistan, the US and UK need to avoid the Saigon trap: supporting and bankrolling an illegitimate government indefinitely, out of a lack of better alternatives. At present, the US is punching beneath its weight in Afghanistan – precisely because the mission is so important. Obama has called Afghanistan the "necessary war" and promised to redouble efforts to repair its governance and beat back the Taliban insurgency. But the perverse consequence of throwing his full support behind Nato efforts was to signal to the Afghan government that the US could not afford to lose, thus undercutting American leverage in the region where it is needed most.

 Now that he has won this bitterly fought election and has been appointed, Karzai will resist reform in full knowledge that neither the American nor British governments can afford to see outright failure in Afghanistan.

Guardian, 3/11/09

US needs Pakistan's support in Afghanistan

Three issues dominate the American concerns about Pakistan: one, the safe havens for Al Qaeda and affiliated groups in Fata and other parts of the country; two, cross-border movement of militants that keeps the American and Afghan troops under pressure; and three, the supply lines that run through Pakistan that cannot realistically be totally replaced by alternative routes through Central Asia or Iran.

But in addition to these issues, there is another important factor in the Pak-Afghan-US matrix: Pakistan’s intimate knowledge of Afghanistan, especially of the Pakhtun population which will be at the centre of a hearts-and-minds campaign in any ‘protect the population’ counter-insurgency strategy.

If there is one thing that is clear about the American strategy towards Afghanistan it is that the US does not have the will to expend the blood or treasure necessary to turn Afghanistan into a semblance of a modern nation-state – if indeed that is possible for an outside power to achieve at all. So going forward, the US will have to find a way to work with local partners in addition to a weak, discredited central government and that’s precisely where Pakistan’s help can be most valuable, helping the Americans and Afghans differentiate between the various players.

Having said that, Pakistan’s approach to Afghanistan leaves much to be desired. Officially, the security establishment takes the line that Afghanistan should be a ‘neutral’ place in terms of regional powers such as Russia, Iran and even India; however, there is a suspicion that ‘neutral’ really means a predominant role for Pakistan.

Dawn, Pakistan, 3/11/09

Brown calls on Karzai to unify Afghanistan

Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged President Hamid Karzai Monday to set out a "unifying programme" for Afghanistan and tackle corruption after he was handed a second term in office, he said.

Brown told lawmakers he had spoken to Karzai by phone after the Afghan poll watchdog called off a one-man run-off which had threatened to descend into farce, a decision welcomed by Britain.

They discussed "the importance of moving quickly to set out a unity programme for the future governance of Afghanistan.

"Afghanistan now needs new and urgent measures for tackling corruption, for strengthening local government," Brown said.

Associated Press, 2/11/09

US engaged in civil war in Afghanistan

A Foreign Service officer who resigned in protest over U.S. policy in Afghanistan says America shouldn't be bogged down in "a civil war" in South Asia. Matthew Hoh is a former Marine who fought in Iraq and became a diplomat in a Taliban stronghold.

He said on NBC's "Today" show Monday he's gotten support for stepping down after only six months in the job. Hoh said he believes the reaction he's heard reinforces his view that the war is only fueling the insurgency in Afghanistan. Hoh said the Afghan people view U.S. troops as occupiers and that it makes no sense to carry on.

Associated Press, 2/11/09

British forces face bloodiest year since Falklands

British forces are likely to suffer the bloodiest year of action since the Falklands War after the death of a soldier in Afghanistan brought the number killed in this year level with the toll in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007.

The death of a member of the Royal Logistics Corps in an explosion near Sangin brings the number of fatalities so far in 2009 to 89 with two months of the year remaining. The figure is the same as the total number killed in the whole of 2007 in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The number of servicemen and women injured has also been extensive – a total of 940 in the four years of combat. This year, the number of wounded has almost exceeded the casualties of the previous two years put together.

Daily Telegraph, 1/11/09

Iraq election still stalled

Iraqi politicians have been turning up their rhetoric over Kirkuk, the oil-rich city that both Kurds in the north and Arabs in the south want to control. The dispute has caused a deadlock over the country's election law, threatening to delay Iraq's nationwide elections set for mid-January. Any vote setback could, in turn, disrupt American plans to withdraw troops from Iraq, scheduled to ramp up after the vote.

"We are getting to a crisis," said Marina Ottoway, director of the Middle East Program at the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "They have been trying for over a year to reach a compromise on Kirkuk."

"Now," she warns, "it is becoming a problem for the United States."

Associated Press, 1/11/09

US backs down on settlement freeze

The Palestinian Authority Sunday accused the United States of "back-pedaling" after Secretary Clinton suggested that a full freeze of Israeli activity in settlement areas was no longer a precondition to the resumption of peace talks. Clinton instead chose to laud Israel for making "unprecedented" concessions toward slowing the rate of expansion within Israeli settlements.

The Palestinians have said that they would not return to the negotiating table until all settlement construction was halted – a position backed by the United States until Sunday.

"The negotiations are in a state of paralysis and the result of Israel's intransigence and America's back-peddling is that there is no hope of negotiations on the horizon," said Nabil Abu Rudeinah, spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Christian Science Monitor, 31/10/09

Army worried by growing opposition to war

Defence chiefs are growing increasingly concerned about evidence of public opposition to the war in Afghanistan and want to see more troops deployed before it becomes politically impossible.

Despite an outward show of optimism, few military commanders deny the Taliban-led insurgency has been gaining ground, and that continuing uncertainty over the presidential election there is making a bad situation worse. Military leaders are deeply concerned about the situation in Afghanistan, all the more so as opinion polls show growing opposition to the war. They are determined to press for speedy decisions on the deployment of more troops and what Gordon Brown calls a "new strategy".

Guardian, 31/10/09

China invests in Afghanistan

At a former al-Qaida stronghold southeast of the Afghan capital, a state-owned Chinese company is at work on a $3 billion mine project to tap one of the world's largest unexploited copper reserves, a potential financial boon for an impoverished country mired in war.

The promise of a bright future at Aynak, however, cannot conceal the troubling reality of how business is often done in Afghanistan, according to critics of the Kabul government's decision to reject bids from competitors in the U.S., Canada and other countries.

Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States, said the bidding process was above board. He said he pushed for the U.S. bidder, Phelps Dodge, to be awarded the Aynak rights, but that China offered to start work right away while Phelps wanted to wait until the country was safer.

"We can't afford to give the mining rights to a company that will sit on them for the next 10 or 15 years," Jawad said.

China needs huge quantities of raw materials to feed its rapid economic growth and energy demands. It is well positioned to become the dominant force in Afghanistan's potentially lucrative minerals sector, said Don Ritter, president of the Afghan-American Chamber of Commerce.

China has contributed little to improving security in Afghanistan, yet with the Aynak deal, stands to gain from the sacrifices made by the U.S. and NATO in troops and money.

"The world isn't fair," said Robert Kaplan, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. "A worse outcome to staying and helping the Chinese would be withdrawing and losing a great battle in the war against radical Islam."

Associated Press, 1/11/09

NATO 'making attack on UK more likely'

Nato's strategy in Afghanistan is increasing the likelihood of terrorist attacks in Britain, a Tory MP has claimed. Adam Holloway, a former Grenadier Guard, called for a new focus on reconciliation with Afghan insurgents rather than more intense fighting. The troop surge proposed by top US commander General Stanley McChrystal would only fuel the difficulties facing Nato troops, he warned.

Mr Holloway, a member of the Commons Defence Select Committee, said Nato was "on the brink of failure" as Afghan support for its work nose-dived amid deteriorating conditions.

Press Association, 31/10/09

Widespread distrust of US in Pakistan

Every time Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton tried to win over Pakistanis during her three-day charm offensive last week, they fired back a polite but firm message: We don't really trust your country.

No matter how hard Clinton tried to reassure audiences in Lahore and Islamabad with talk of providing economic aid where it's needed most, Pakistanis seized on her visit as the perfect moment to lash out at a U.S. government they perceive as arrogant, domineering and insensitive to their plight.

The opinions Clinton heard weren't the strident voices of radical clerics or politicians with anti-U.S. agendas. Some of the most biting criticisms came from well-mannered university students and respected, seasoned journalists, a reflection of the breadth of dissatisfaction Pakistanis have with U.S. policy toward their country.

In those voices what rang clear was a sense that Pakistan was paying a heavy price for America's "war on terror."

Los Angeles Times, 1/11/09

Karzai rival withdraws from runoff

Abdullah Abdullah, the chief rival to President Hamid Karzai, announced on Sunday that he would withdraw from the Nov. 7 Afghan runoff election, effectively handing a new term to Mr. Karzai but potentially damaging the government’s credibility.

“I will not participate in the Nov. 7 election,” Mr. Abdullah said, according to The A.P., because a “transparent election is not possible.”

The election deadlock over the last nine weeks has highlighted the Afghan state’s fragility and has showed deep and growing divisions among Afghans. And it has, like so many othe r recent events here, posed a worsening problem for American and other Western leaders, who have found themselves stuck with a leader who has lost the support of large numbers of Afghans, and whose government is widely regarded as corrupt.

New York Times, 1/11/09

US signs Colombia bases deal

Colombia and the United States signed an agreement Friday that allows U.S. personnel to be stationed at seven military bases in the South American nation.

The United States says it needs the bases to help in its fight against terrorists and narcotraffickers, especially since the closure a few months ago of a U.S. base in Ecuador. The United States maintains similar "forward operating locations" in El Salvador and Aruba-Curacao.

Colombia's agreement to host the Americans has come under harsh criticism in Latin America, particularly from President Hugo Chavez in neighboring Venezuela. Chavez has likened the agreement to an act of war and accuses the United States of wanting to stage military personnel nearby to destabilize his leftist government. The U.S. forward operating location in Aruba-Curacao is off the northern coast of Venezuela.

CNN, 30/10/09

Taliban vow more pre-election attacks

Afghanistan's Taliban militia vowed Thursday to intensify its attacks in the build-up to next week's run-off presidential election after an attack on a guesthouse for foreigners in Kabul.

"We'll intensify our attacks in the coming days. We'll disrupt the elections," Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi told AFP by telephone from an undisclosed location. "We have new plans and tactics for attacks to disrupt the elections," the spokesman emphasised.

Attacks by the Taliban, toppled by US-led forces in late 2001, were a major deterrent to voters in the first round of the election on August 20 when turnout in some provinces was as low as five percent.

AFP, 29/10/09

Police arrested after Baghdad bombing

Iraq announced Thursday that it had arrested dozens of police officers and soldiers responsible for security in the neighborhood where car bombs killed and wounded hundreds of people outside government buildings this week.

The attacks on Sunday, aimed at the Justice Ministry and the Baghdad provincial council buildings, occurred in a heavily protected section of the capital, prompting accusations that Iraq’s security forces had been complicit in the bombings. The two suicide attacks killed 155 people and wounded more than 500.

Among the 61 people in security jobs arrested Thursday were the commanders of local police posts and the soldiers and police officers responsible for security checkpoints in downtown Baghdad near the buildings.

New York Times, 29/10/09