US strikes deal w/ Taliban to remove troops from Afghanistan (2 Viewers)

[Heathen]

Surprised I didn't see it posted anywhere. And to preface -- I know there are too many contextual complexities to name regarding this.

Props to this administration for pushing to get this done. Endless war shouldn't be what American citizens view as 'normal'.

This would be a huge win for Americans and Afghanis if this works out as planned:

Afghan conflict: US and Taliban sign deal to end 18-year war

President Trump says it is "time after all these years to bring our people back home".

www.bbc.com

The US and Nato allies have agreed to withdraw all troops within 14 months if the militants uphold the deal.

President Trump said it had been a "long and hard journey" in Afghanistan. "It's time after all these years to bring our people back home," he said.

Talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban are due to follow.

Under the agreement, the militants also agreed not to allow al-Qaeda or any other extremist group to operate in the areas they control.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

America and the Taliban | FRONTLINE

How America's 20-year war in Afghanistan culminated in Taliban victory.

www.pbs.org

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

Part two:

America and the Taliban | FRONTLINE

Watch FRONTLINE's documentary examining how America's 20-year war in Afghanistan culminated in Taliban victory.

www.pbs.org

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

This is not to overlook the cards Trump dealt here but Biden didn't have to play Trump's hand.

The Afghanistan withdrawal was a shambles. Why is Biden pretending it wasn’t? - The Boston Globe

It’s time the president stopped passing the buck.

www.bostonglobe.com

Almost overnight, Biden ruined much of what Americans had accomplished during two decades of sacrifice in Afghanistan. Millions of civilians were plunged into a fresh hell of repression and destitution. The Taliban’s brutal Islamists had an enormous strategic victory — as well as more than $7 billion worth of US weapons, ammunition, aircraft, and vehicles — handed to them on a silver platter. Thousands of Afghans who had put their lives on the line to assist US forces were left behind to face the vengeance of the Taliban. The chaos that accompanied the hasty retreat, with scenes of desperation so eerily similar to the fall of Saigon in 1975, conveyed a global message of American weakness — a message Vladimir Putin undoubtedly read as a green light to invade Ukraine six months later.

 

[DaveXA]

This is not to overlook the cards Trump dealt here but Biden didn't have to play Trump's hand.

The Afghanistan withdrawal was a shambles. Why is Biden pretending it wasn’t? - The Boston Globe

It’s time the president stopped passing the buck.

www.bostonglobe.com

Almost overnight, Biden ruined much of what Americans had accomplished during two decades of sacrifice in Afghanistan. Millions of civilians were plunged into a fresh hell of repression and destitution. The Taliban’s brutal Islamists had an enormous strategic victory — as well as more than $7 billion worth of US weapons, ammunition, aircraft, and vehicles — handed to them on a silver platter. Thousands of Afghans who had put their lives on the line to assist US forces were left behind to face the vengeance of the Taliban. The chaos that accompanied the hasty retreat, with scenes of desperation so eerily similar to the fall of Saigon in 1975, conveyed a global message of American weakness — a message Vladimir Putin undoubtedly read as a green light to invade Ukraine six months later.

This males a lot of sense. Thanks for posting.

 

[coldseat]

This is not to overlook the cards Trump dealt here but Biden didn't have to play Trump's hand.

The Afghanistan withdrawal was a shambles. Why is Biden pretending it wasn’t? - The Boston Globe

It’s time the president stopped passing the buck.

www.bostonglobe.com

Almost overnight, Biden ruined much of what Americans had accomplished during two decades of sacrifice in Afghanistan. Millions of civilians were plunged into a fresh hell of repression and destitution. The Taliban’s brutal Islamists had an enormous strategic victory — as well as more than $7 billion worth of US weapons, ammunition, aircraft, and vehicles — handed to them on a silver platter. Thousands of Afghans who had put their lives on the line to assist US forces were left behind to face the vengeance of the Taliban. The chaos that accompanied the hasty retreat, with scenes of desperation so eerily similar to the fall of Saigon in 1975, conveyed a global message of American weakness — a message Vladimir Putin undoubtedly read as a green light to invade Ukraine six months later.

Maybe Putin should have read that as a sign to not invade another country and get stuck in a war with people fighting for their homeland. Clearly he misread the situation and has now exposed the weakness of his own military and country.

For all the handwringing, there was nobody with a plan that was going to leave a stable Afghan government in place. After 20 years and $7 billion dollars, our options where to set up permanent occupation of Afghanistan and spend billions/trillions of more dollars or get out. I'm still glad we got out, especially after the deal Trump and his administration made with the Taliban.

Another fact, our continued occupation of Afghanistan would have made it impossible to asset Ukraine in the way that we have and also made it impossible to build up the coalition that has thwarted Putin.

 

[Taurus]

Maybe Putin should have read that as a sign to not invade another country and get stuck in a war with people fighting for their homeland. Clearly he misread the situation and has now exposed the weakness of his own military and country.

For all the handwringing, there was nobody with a plan that was going to leave a stable Afghan government in place. After 20 years and $7 billion dollars, our options where to set up permanent occupation of Afghanistan and spend billions/trillions of more dollars or get out. I'm still glad we got out, especially after the deal Trump and his administration made with the Taliban.

Another fact, our continued occupation of Afghanistan would have made it impossible to asset Ukraine in the way that we have and also made it impossible to build up the coalition that has thwarted Putin.

Yeah, but we didn't have to leave our friends out to dry like that. My opinion's always been that we should've left as soon as we got OBL. That was the reason we were there in the first place.

 

[DJ1BigTymer]

This is not to overlook the cards Trump dealt here but Biden didn't have to play Trump's hand.

The Afghanistan withdrawal was a shambles. Why is Biden pretending it wasn’t? - The Boston Globe

It’s time the president stopped passing the buck.

www.bostonglobe.com

Almost overnight, Biden ruined much of what Americans had accomplished during two decades of sacrifice in Afghanistan. Millions of civilians were plunged into a fresh hell of repression and destitution. The Taliban’s brutal Islamists had an enormous strategic victory — as well as more than $7 billion worth of US weapons, ammunition, aircraft, and vehicles — handed to them on a silver platter. Thousands of Afghans who had put their lives on the line to assist US forces were left behind to face the vengeance of the Taliban. The chaos that accompanied the hasty retreat, with scenes of desperation so eerily similar to the fall of Saigon in 1975, conveyed a global message of American weakness — a message Vladimir Putin undoubtedly read as a green light to invade Ukraine six months later.

Couldn't disagree more with that assessment! I believe that Biden's administration had no choice but to honor the agreement the United States made with the Taliban. The Presidency is not about one man, it's about our Nation and what does it say about our country that our word is only worth 4 years?

We elected an idiot in 2016 and we have to live with those consequences and one of those consequences is honoring the treaties that idiot signed in the name of the United States of America.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

Couldn't disagree more with that assessment! I believe that Biden's administration had no choice but to honor the agreement the United States made with the Taliban. The Presidency is not about one man, it's about our Nation and what does it say about our country that our word is only worth 4 years?

We elected an idiot in 2016 and we have to live with those consequences and one of those consequences is honoring the treaties that idiot signed in the name of the United States of America.

No. That's ridiculous. You're saying if one administration makes a poor decision, the following administration must continue with the poor decision. What does it say about our country that we don't improve our decision making no matter the cost? It was a mistake for Trump to deal with the Taliban and it was an even bigger mistake for Biden to continue down that road.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

..........

Another fact, our continued occupation of Afghanistan would have made it impossible to asset Ukraine in the way that we have and also made it impossible to build up the coalition that has thwarted Putin.

Of course not.

 

[DJ1BigTymer]

No. That's ridiculous. You're saying if one administration makes a poor decision, the following administration must continue with the poor decision. What does it say about our country that we don't improve our decision making no matter the cost? It was a mistake for Trump to deal with the Taliban and it was an even bigger mistake for Biden to continue down that road.

No, what was ridiculous was allowing that man to make a decision for The United States of America without a consensus or fail-safes in place to protect our interests! Each POTUS has a responsibility to protect the US beyond their personal interest and trump doesn't understand that and never will. He is not a public servant.

Treaties are built on trust and trust in The United States would be further deteriorated had the US just walked away from that treaty. Why would anyone adversary engage in diplomacy with us? Within the past decade we made a deal with Iran and walked away and now you want to do the same thing again? Biden's actions were an effort to restore the "Word" of the United States. It would have benefitted him personally to back out of that deal with a terrorist organization that his predecessor invited to Camp David, instead, he choose to work on reestablishing the nation's honor.

Edit: This is not governing, this is how a tyrant behaves.

Trump has pulled out of international agreements before. Here’s a list. - The Boston Globe

Friday’s announcement is the latest in a series of controversial moves by the Trump administration to pull out of international agreements and organizations.

www.bostonglobe.com

Trump's top five withdrawals from international agreements

US President Donald Trump has made several controversial decisions, including ones that forced the US out of international institutions. Here are Trump's top five exits.

www.trtworld.com

He turned the US's, already shaky, word to the word of a pathological liar in less than 4 years. It's gonna take time to rebuild that trust back up and continuing to back out of treaties would not be a great start to rebuild trust.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

No, what was ridiculous was allowing that man to make a decision for The United States of America without a consensus or fail-safes in place to protect our interests! Each POTUS has a responsibility to protect the US beyond their personal interest and trump doesn't understand that and never will. He is not a public servant.

Treaties are built on trust and trust in The United States would be further deteriorated had the US just walked away from that treaty. Why would anyone adversary engage in diplomacy with us? Within the past decade we made a deal with Iran and walked away and now you want to do the same thing again? Biden's actions were an effort to restore the "Word" of the United States. It would have benefitted him personally to back out of that deal with a terrorist organization that his predecessor invited to Camp David, instead, he choose to work on reestablishing the nation's honor.

Edit: This is not governing, this is how a tyrant behaves.

Trump has pulled out of international agreements before. Here’s a list. - The Boston Globe

Friday’s announcement is the latest in a series of controversial moves by the Trump administration to pull out of international agreements and organizations.

www.bostonglobe.com

Trump's top five withdrawals from international agreements

US President Donald Trump has made several controversial decisions, including ones that forced the US out of international institutions. Here are Trump's top five exits.

www.trtworld.com

He turned the US's, already shaky, word to the word of a pathological liar in less than 4 years. It's gonna take time to rebuild that trust back up and continuing to back out of treaties would not be a great start to rebuild trust.

Trump didn't abandon thousands of Afghans, leave behind millions of dollars in military equipment, shore up a terrorist organization, and consequently let China and Russia know that we no longer had the will. Biden did that. And he did it against the advice of many of his advisers.

How Biden went his own way on Afghanistan withdrawal | CNN Politics

President Joe Biden ordered the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan over the advice of some of his senior-most advisers in the Pentagon and State Department, leaders who are now charged with carrying out the particulars of the complicated drawdown.

www.cnn.com

 

[coldseat]

Trump didn't abandon thousands of Afghans, leave behind millions of dollars in military equipment, shore up a terrorist organization, and consequently let China and Russia know that we no longer had the will. Biden did that. And he did it against the advice of many of his advisers.

How Biden went his own way on Afghanistan withdrawal | CNN Politics

President Joe Biden ordered the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan over the advice of some of his senior-most advisers in the Pentagon and State Department, leaders who are now charged with carrying out the particulars of the complicated drawdown.

www.cnn.com

Those same military's advisers who led the US to the positions it was in in Afghanistan with promises that the tide would turn on the Taliban and we could establish a functioning democratic government. Hmmm .....

Biden made the correct, hard choice. As hard as it will always be for some to accept. The withdrawal was already underway when he took office. He wasn't going to suddenly start building up our forces in the region again and commit to further endless war in Afghanistan.

Anyway, that's the past. We should study it and learn what not to do in future engagements. But those lessons should have already been learned from Vietnam. Our military adviser and political neo-cons seem incapable of learning this lesson.

 

[DJ1BigTymer]

Trump didn't abandon thousands of Afghans, leave behind millions of dollars in military equipment, shore up a terrorist organization, and consequently let China and Russia know that we no longer had the will. Biden did that. And he did it against the advice of many of his advisers.

How Biden went his own way on Afghanistan withdrawal | CNN Politics

President Joe Biden ordered the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan over the advice of some of his senior-most advisers in the Pentagon and State Department, leaders who are now charged with carrying out the particulars of the complicated drawdown.

www.cnn.com

No he did not, The United States did. Get it through your head!

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

No he did not, The United States did. Get it through your head!

Lol, no, Biden did, erroneously.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

Biden made the correct, hard choice.

Biden, against sound advice, made the wrong decision. And, it's costing us, and Afghanistan, big time.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

Afghanistan: UN experts say 20 years of progress for women and girls’ rights erased since Taliban takeover

GENEVA (8 March 2023) – UN experts* today said the situation of women and girls’ rights in Afghanistan has reverted to that of the pre-2002 era when the Taliban last controlled the country, effectively erasing progress on women’s rights in the intervening 20 years. They issue the following...

www.ohchr.org

 

[DaveXA]

Those same military's advisers who led the US to the positions it was in in Afghanistan with promises that the tide would turn on the Taliban and we could establish a functioning democratic government. Hmmm .....

Biden made the correct, hard choice. As hard as it will always be for some to accept. The withdrawal was already underway when he took office. He wasn't going to suddenly start building up our forces in the region again and commit to further endless war in Afghanistan.

Anyway, that's the past. We should study it and learn what not to do in future engagements. But those lessons should have already been learned from Vietnam. Our military adviser and political neo-cons seem incapable of learning this lesson.

Nah, it was the easy political choice.

 

[BullSheetBuddha]

Biden was wrong on Afghanistan

The administration of President Biden had a moral responsibility to try for a third option in Afghanistan, one that did not commit to an indefinite American presence but did more to pursue an intra-Afghan peace deal and to secure greater rights for Afghan women, Madiha Afzal writes.

www.brookings.edu