Guest Post by Pat Buchanan
Yet, given the character of the Taliban, as revealed in its previous tenure, and the desire for revenge against those who have been killing Taliban comrades, the future looks grim for those left behind.
In Afghanistan, the mission failure appears complete.
The trillion-dollar project to plant Western democracy in a Muslim nation historically fabled for driving out imperial intruders has crashed and burned after 20 years, and the Taliban are suddenly back in power.
After investing scores of billions in training and arming a force of 350,000 Afghani troops, the U.S. could not stand up an army and a government that could survive our departure.
And the final U.S. departure from Hamid Karzai International Airport may become, like JFK’s Bay of Pigs, a synonym for American debacle.
Nor is the failure ours alone. Many of our principal allies were heavily invested. The British are now attempting to bring their people out of Kabul under the same conditions as ours.
The leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party and possibly the next chancellor of Germany, Armin Laschet, calls the withdrawal “the biggest debacle that NATO has suffered since its founding.”
Three decades ago, after the breakup of the USSR and the end of the Cold War, Republican Sen. Richard Lugar said that NATO, having lost the rationale for its existence — containment of the Soviet Union — would now have “to go out of area or go out of business.”
Cynics might say that, in Afghanistan, NATO did both.
After 9/11, “the most successful alliance in history” invoked Article 5 and backed the U.S. war to oust the Taliban and annihilate the Al Qaeda terrorists who had carried out 9/11. Many sent troops.
But there could be worse to come.
While there are about 4,000 U.S. troops at the Kabul airport, U.S. control does not extend beyond the airport perimeter.
When asked if U.S. troops could enter Kabul and extract American citizens, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin replied, “I don’t have the capability to go out and extend operations currently into Kabul.” Americans in Kabul and other cities must make their own way to the Kabul airport.
The U.S. thus depends today upon the sufferance of the Taliban to let the Americans through the gridlocked highway. Many Afghan allies are being impeded and turned back. Having aided our troops during the war, these Afghan allies face murderous reprisals and retribution.
There are other present perils.
A few mortar shells landing on the tarmac of the lone runway at HKIA, and no plane can fly in or out until the runway is repaired. The arrival of troops and supplies, and any daily departure of 5,000 to 9,000 people, would be halted.
If fighting is renewed, the Americans left in Kabul and other cities become hostages to the Taliban. And there are many more out there than the 52 Americans held by Iran in the hostage crisis that ended the presidency of Jimmy Carter.
The U.S. does, however, retain leverage. U.S. airpower can still do damage to the Taliban, and the U.S. can veto any International Monetary Fund money and cut the Taliban’s access to Afghanistan’s financial reserves in U.S. banks.
Without cash, the Taliban will have a hellish time providing for the necessities the country needs to stay viable.
Right now, the Americans and the Taliban need each other. The Taliban need time to consider their control, and the Americans need time to get their people and their Afghan allies out.
Thus, the Taliban are putting on a moderate face at the top level.
Yet, given the character of the Taliban, as revealed in its previous tenure, and the desire for revenge against those who have been killing Taliban comrades, the future looks grim for those left behind.
When Saigon fell in 1975, its armed forces went into re-education camps — concentration camps. Hundreds of thousands of civilians fled on rafts, many to their deaths in the South China Sea. The Cambodians who backed us underwent a genocide, with a fraction of the entire population annihilated by the Khmer Rouge of Pol Pot.
As for the damage done to Joe Biden’s presidency, it is significant and permanent. The collapse of the regime, and the botched withdrawal of U.S. troops, U.S. citizens and Afghan friends and allies, have tarnished any reputation for competence Biden had.
As for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley and Austin, it is hard to see either surviving long in their positions after learning they did not see coming the imminent and worst foreign policy debacle since the fall of Saigon.
Did the U.S. intelligence agencies see it coming? Did they fail to inform the Pentagon or White House?
After the Bay of Pigs in April 1961, former CIA Director Allen Dulles, who had a role in the failed invasion, was, after a decent interval of six months, cashiered.
One imagines that senior Biden officials’ heads will roll well before that date in the Biden administration. For in this disaster, it seems, no one saw it coming so soon, or becoming so sweeping.
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Coming to the shores of this country courtesy of the Lame Duck Moron aka POTUS aka POS.
I think I’m done sitting here reading and weeping for a while.
For what it is worth?
I have been in contact with a few folks I knew “back in the day” and am shocked to my core regarding the complete and total disregard for every emergency plan which begins with leave no one behind and destroy all your equipment and supplies on your way out.
I cannot imagine the enormous amount of precious intelligence data which is now in the hands of the Taliban.
Occam’s Razor applies to Major Bunglers like Lame Duck Biden as well. The fruit (Hunter) does not fall far from the demented old tree.
Joe Biden intentionally Bungled this and left all our folks behind to be used as hostages. He will dole out money to the illegitimate Taliban and take his 10 percent like all mafia bosses. The military cabal will also get their cut and have taken over. If you don’t realize it, they are about to implement martial law under the guise of vaccinating the entire population. The first lockdown was practice and while you are busy trying to figure out how we are going to get those poor souls out of Afghanistan, watch what is going on behind the stage.
And, it is always about the money folks. Biden has been on the take since the early years and trained up his children in the way he wanted them to go.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/07/21/christopher-tigani-joe-biden-fundraising-373724
I had hoped to hear from a couple of folks who are “in the know” about such things.
Since I hear nothing after the Military Readiness Fatigue post, I will wait to see if I get any snail mail. I doubt it.
My old friend at Johns Hopkins seems to have taken the Koolaid, but with just “5 years to retirement!” as she told me on the last little notecard I received in the mail, (along with encouragement for Nick and I to get vaccinated, as she and her entire family have done in Columbia and Easton, Maryland), I can’t blame her. She’s lived and worked in that environment all of her life, while I only lived and worked in it while I was active duty (10 years) and then for another couple decades as a contract employee.
Still, it is sad to realize a lifelong bond has been broken by a flu virus. This lifelong bond she and I formed in basic training almost 40 years ago stood the test of time, two failed marriages (one each), tragedies and triumphs and careers and kids and all those things we all do as we journey through life but usually we do it alone.
My old friend and I joked about the USAF issuing each of us a twin because in many ways, it was true.
She and I were born within 26 hours of one another but worlds apart. She is very Mayflower descentish and I’m very country hickish but I was born shortly before midnight December 27th, 1961 and she was born shortly after midnight December 29th and we met the first day of basic training 22 years later.
Anyway, Occam’s Razor applies even more strongly when you are talking about the most corrupt politician ever to call himself the President of the United States.
He will be the last President of the United States if his military generals get their way.
Unless a lot of us face facts, they will.
I got to “Nor is the failure ours alone. Many of our principal allies were heavily invested. ” and thought: “are you fucking kidding me?”. Then I looked at the by-line. He should be in a home with Biden.
All this terrible angst about many American citizens stranded in that shit-hole. Why?
Aren’t they mostly “contractors”?
What is a “contractor”? It’s an American who decided to take their asses to a foreign country, on the other side of the globe, and to either directly (mercenaries) or indirectly (in support of mercenaries, like, truck drivers …) kill citizens of that country who don’t like democracy, or Big Macs, or whatever ….. in exchange for a big fucken paycheck every fucken month. A coupe years of “service” and they come back with a boatload of cash.
I’m supposed to feel sorry for these for-hire disrupters/killers? So sorry … can’t do it …. other than your own greed, you had no reason to be there in the first place! You took a risk, too bad it came to an abrupt end, now save your own sorry asses.
(I’m sure there are a few good innocent Americans in the bunch … a SMALL group, I would say. Hope they make it out OK.)
If the Taliban were really smart and wanted to show the West some true moral authority, plus score an amazing public relations coup, they would hold on to some quality UK nationals in an exchange for Julian Assange, who is currently being held in cruel conditions by the British Crown.
They could even sweeten the deal with offering various and sundry ‘Murkin contractors, military laptops, or documents found at the embassy or at a hundred abandoned installations around the Islamic Emirate.
It would be a win-win.
FREE JULIAN ASSAGE!