[Peace-discuss] Is the Pentagon Deliberately "Degrading" Afghanistan's Capacity for Peace?

[Robert Naiman]

The Washington Post reports that *according to the US government's own
assessment*, military escalation has failed in Afghanistan. Yet, the same
report tells us that no change is expected in December when the policy is
reviewed. How could this be? One explanation would be that the policy is
failing according to the Pentagon's *stated* objectives, but succeeding
according to the Pentagon's *unstated* objectives. The escalation has failed
to degrade the Taliban *militarily*, but is apparently succeeding in
degrading the Taliban *politically*: mid-level commanders and footsoldiers
the Pentagon is killing are being replaced by younger recruits who are more
militant and independent, thus degrading the ability of the Taliban
leadership to negotiate a peace deal and enforce the deal on its troops. If
the Pentagon's goal were to end the war, this would be dangerously
counterproductive; but if the Pentagon's goal is to facilitate a long-term
US military presence in Afghanistan, this could be useful, since a peace
deal would almost certainly imply a timetable for US military withdrawal.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/is-the-pentagon-deliberat_b_775353.html

-- 
Robert Naiman
Policy Director
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org

Urge Congress to Support a Timetable for Military Withdrawal from
Afghanistan
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/feingold-mcgovern
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