Gen Pataeus advances idea of extending US occupation in Afghanistan

The Following two news items present some disouraging information, namely, that Gen. Patraeus is using his dubiously iconic influence to postpone the withdrawal process of US troops from Afghanistan. Since President Obama appointed the general to his present leadership role in Afghanistan, this may indeed become the accepted policy. If it should become the policy, the war without a reasonable public objective and with great costs to ordinary Afghans, the Afghan environment and infrastructure, and to American troops and taxpayers; the war that is opposed by an increasing percentage of American citizens and by citizens in most other countries; the unwinnable war that threatens to strengthen the US militarized foreign policy and continue to disfavor diplomatic initiatives, especially regional ones - will continue. If there are motives for this war, they involve imperialistic, non-democratic, interests.


First Item:
Headline from Democracy Now, 8-16-10

Gen: Petraeus Hints Scheduled Afghan Withdrawal Could Be Postponed

The top US military official in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, has launched a public relations campaign to build support for the US war effort. During an appearance on Meet the Press, Petraeus asserted that the US strategy in Afghanistan is "fundamentally sound," but he hinted that he might oppose President Obama’s plan to begin withdrawing troops next summer. Although the troop withdrawal is scheduled to begin next July, Petraeus said the withdrawal date is not set in stone.

Gen. David Petraeus: "This is a date when a process begins that is conditions-based. And as the conditions permit, we transition tasks to our Afghan counterparts and the security forces and in various governmental institutions, and that enables a, quote, 'responsible' drawdown of our forces."

Second Item:

Gen. Petraeus Cautions Against ‘Rapid Pullout’ in Afghanistan
Posted By Jason Ditz On August 15, 2010

In a pair of interviews released today, General David Petraeus seemed to be setting Americans up for years of additional war in Afghanistan, cautioning against a “rapid pullout” while raising the possibility that he would oppose even a trivial July 2011 drawdown.

Rather Gen. Petraeus maintains that he is “not bound” by the July 2011 date and reserves the right to tell the president at that time, which will be just shy of the 10 year anniversary of the invasion, is “too soon.”

Though it is difficult to imagine how anything the US does at this point in what is arguable the longest war in American history would constitute a “rapid pullout,” Gen. Petraeus seems to be backing off all promises of “gains” by the end of the year, while the same time maintaining that the progress is being made.

But instead of being able to demonstrate this progress at a time when all of the metrics are showing a war getting worse and worse, the general seems to be trying to delay backing up these claims in the future, insisting only that he hopes to demonstrate the progress before July of next year. Even this seems to be at best prospective, and will likely get shrugged off in the future as the situation warrants.

Article printed from News From Antiwar.com: http://news.antiwar.com
URL to article: http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/15/gen-petraeus-cautions-against-rapid-pullout-in-afghanistan/