U.S. General Dempsey: A Taliban Victory In Afghanistan Would Lead To Regional Instability

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testifies during a hearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee in Washington, D.C., June 11, 2013. DOD photo by D. Myles Cullen

Defeat In Afghanistan Would Lead To Regional Instability: US -- Indian Express/PTI

An American loss in Afghanistan could result in instability in the region with re-emergence of extremist groups, a top Pentagon official has told lawmakers.

"The region will become unstable. I think there will be problems on Pakistan's border. Iran will be encouraged to become even more regionally aggressive," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey told Senators.

"We could find a re-emergence of violent extremist groups," he said during a Congressional hearing yesterday.

"The difference between winning and losing is certainly what we do between now and the end of '14 but also, I think, the commitment we make beyond," Dempsey said.

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Update: US defeat in Afghanistan will lead to regional instability -- Khaama Press

My Comment: General Martin Dempsey is probably right .... but we cannot stay in Afghanistan indefinitely. Bottom line .... the Afghans (and their regional neighbors) will need to solve these problems themselves, and the international presence in Afghanistan is (in my opinion) only giving them an excuse to not confront these national security issue on their own.

Death And Taxes In Afghanistan

Two Things Are Certain in Afghanistan: (IED) Deaths and (Screwed Up) Taxes -- Mark Thompson, Battleland/Time

A roadside bomb killed three U.S. troops in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday. You can always count on death, as Ben Franklin ruefully noted. And in Afghanistan, it seems, you can always count on taxes. Being screwed up. Big time.

Just check out the title of Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John Sopko’s report released Tuesday:

Taxes: Afghan Government Has Levied Nearly a Billion Dollars in Business Taxes on Contractors Supporting U.S. Government Efforts in Afghanistan

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My Comment: Yup .... the Afghans are becoming Westernized.

The U.S. Is Still Spending Billions In Afghanistan

The U.S. Is Still Spending Billions In Afghanistan, But No One Seems To Care -- David Francis, Business Insider/The Fiscal Times

Hard-fought gains in Afghanistan over the last decade are at risk of being squandered – unless immediate action is taken to determine the fate of tens of billions of dollars in questionable reconstruction projects, the chief of the Afghan audit agency said.

In an exclusive interview with The Fiscal Times, John F. Sopko, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, said that the Pentagon, aid agencies and the State Department must quickly evaluate these projects to determine whether the billions being spent in Afghanistan right now will yield the desired results or not. Many projects are simply not sustainable, he said – and continuing to spend money on them results not just in a wasted fortune, but very real risks to nearly 70,000 American soldiers who are still there.

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My Comment: I look forward to the day when someone says NO MORE!

Taliban Kidnap 9 Foreigners After Helicopter Is Forced Down

Taliban Captures 10 Civilians In Afghanistan -- Deutsche Welle

Taliban insurgents have abducted 10 people in Afghanistan after a helicopter made an emergency landing. Eight Turks and their Afghan and Russian pilots were on the civilian helicopter.

The helicopter made an emergency landing in strong winds and heavy rain in a Taliban-controlled area south of Kabul, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the border with Pakistan. A spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry said the passengers and pilots were in good health.

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More News On The Taliban Kidnapping 9 Foreigners

Taliban take 11 hostages, including 8 Turks, after emergency helicopter landing in Afghanistan -- Washington Post/AP
Taliban capture 10 after chopper makes emergency landing -- CNN
Taliban capture foreigners from chopper in Afghanistan -- AFP
Taliban Press No Demands Yet for Captured Helicopter Crew -- RIA Novosti
Ankara 'in intensive talks' with Kabul over kidnapped Turks -- Daily Star
Taliban seize international hostages from helicopter -- Christian Science Monitor
All 10 on helicopter forced down in Afghanistan are in good health -Turkey -- Reuters

Karzai - Hegel News Conference Cancelled Over Security Fears In Afghanistan

JALALABAD BRIEFING

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel speaks to the press in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, March 9, 2013. Hagel traveled to Afghanistan on his first trip as the 24th defense secretary to visit U.S. troops, NATO leaders and Afghan counterparts. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo

Hagel-Karzai Talks Canceled In Kabul -- Radio Free Europe

A meeting between U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kabul has been canceled, reportedly due to security reasons.

Hagel is making his first visit to Afghanistan since becoming U.S. defense secretary.

Hagel and Karzai had been expected to discuss issues including Karzai’s recent order demanding the withdrawal of U.S. Special Operations forces from Wardak Province over allegations that Afghans working with the commandos have been involved in abuse and torture.

The agenda was also expected to include security issues connected to the planned withdrawal of all foreign combat forces from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

Withdrawals of tens of thousands of forces are getting under way this year.

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Update #1: Security threat forces cancelation of Hagel, Karzai press conference in Kabul -- Washington Post/AP
Update #2: U.S. defense chief's Afghan news conference canceled over security fears -- Reuters

My Comment: More proof that the security situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating.

How Much Is A Human Life Worth In Afghanistan?

Cost Of Life In Afghanistan: A Few Hundred Dollars The Norm -- Crickey

The family of two Afghan boys killed in a mission involving Australian troops is likely to receive less than $2000 — appropriate compensation for the country.

The family of two young Afghan brothers killed in a mission involving Australian troops is likely to receive less than $2000 in compensation. But that figure is appropriate for Afghan culture and similar to other compensation paid, experts tell Crikey.

Last week the brothers — both under seven — were mistaken for Taliban insurgents while collecting firewood and caring for their animals and were shot. The incident is still being investigated, although the Australian Defence Force and the International Security Assistance Force apologised for their deaths and Defence Minister Stephen Smith says the family will receive compensation. Smith told ABC’s 7.30 last night:

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Update: Compensation to be paid to families of two boys killed in Afghanistan 'tragedy' -- The Australian

My Comment: News reports like this only reinforces my opinion that we have become one of the problems and that we should get out of Afghanistan without delay.

For U.S. Troops In Afghanistan The Politics Of Sequestration Seem Remote

A coalition force member communicates on his radio while maintaining security during a movement to establish a temporary patrol base with Afghan special forces in Herat province, Afghanistan, Feb. 17, 2013. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Pete Thibodeau

For Troops in Afghanistan, Sequester Seems Far Away -- Wall Street Journal

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan — While Washington braces for across-the-board spending cuts to kick in, it’s business as usual for troops serving in Afghanistan — and in Helmand province, the politics of sequestration seem remote.

Here in southwestern Afghanistan, the big task is “surge recovery,” military-speak for the steady withdrawal of forces. Helmand province, Afghanistan’s opium-growing heartland, was once the focal point of an intense counterinsurgency campaign: At the height of the war in late 2011, more than 21,000 Marines were operating here.

Today, only 7,000 Marines have boots on the ground in Helmand. Since last March, the Marines have closed a total of about 145 bases, from small combat outposts to airfields. Some have been handed over to Afghan forces, and others simply been bulldozed to the ground.

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My Comment: I live in Canada .... so I am also fortunate to see sequestration from a "remote location". Unfortunately .... the reality is that what happens in the U.S. will impact the world, and America's financial and debt mess is impacting everyone.

Navy Vet Pays Homage To Afghan War Dead

View more videos at: http://nbcdfw.com.

Navy Vet Writes Names to Remember Afghanistan Fallen -- NBC

Ron White hopes people will remember those killed overseas and help those coming home.

A moving tribute took shape on Thursday in downtown Fort Worth, one name at a time.

Local Navy veteran Ron White spent the day writing the name of every service member, CIA agent and civilian contractor killed during the war in Afghanistan. That's more than 2,200 names and 7,000 words, when rank is included, spanning the 50-foot-long wall that is seven-feet tall.

"The sacrifice is huge, it's big and it's real," White said.

White spent the day in Burnett Plaza, just across from where he lives in downtown, writing the names so that people remember those who gave their lives for our country.

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Update #1: Navy vet pays homage to Afghan war dead by writing all 2,200 names on a wall — from memory -- Stars and Stripes/Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Update #2: Man memorized 2,200 fallen soldier names -- FOX News

My Comment: A moving tribute.

Kabul’s ‘Car Guantanamo'

Kabul traffic officers among cars and motorbikes seized during often routine traffic stops for violations that include invalid licenses and out-of-date registrations. Bryan Denton for The New York Times

In Kabul’s ‘Car Guantánamo,’ Autos Languish And Trust Dies -- New York Times

KABUL, Afghanistan — On the northern edge of Kabul, down a road riddled with mammoth potholes, is a secure site that bears all the marks of a prison: high stone walls topped with concertina wire, police officers barking into walkie-talkies, forsaken visitors pacing the compound’s edge, waiting for a sign of hope.

Residents here call it Car Guantánamo.

Behind these walls are thousands of cars, trucks, vans, motorcycles and even bicycles, lined up in vehicular purgatory after falling afoul of the Kabul traffic police. Things that have landed cars in the slammer: illegal left turns, parking violations, involvement in fender-benders and, perhaps most egregious, failure to pay a bribe.

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My Comment: I had a similar experience when visiting friends in Belarus. Even though it happened 20 years ago .... I am still p____!

Is Afghanistan's Kam-Air Involved In Drug Smuggling?

Kam Air (file photo)

Afghan Corruption, Opium, And The Strange Case Of Kam Air -- Dan Murphy, Christian Science Monitor

Kam Air, an airline owned by a politically-connected Afghan businessman, was blacklisted by the US military in Afghanistan for opium smuggling. Then the Afghan government complained.

In late January, the US military blacklisted Afghanistan's Kam Air from winning contracts with the US in Afghanistan, with the head of a US military anticorruption unit asserting that the airline was involved in bulk opium smuggling on commercial flights to Tajikistan.

The decision touched off a flurry of backroom lobbying, given the political connections of Kam Air's owner and the shadow it cast over efforts to merge the private airline carrier with the struggling Afghan government-owned airline Ariana.

The result? A few weeks later, the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan (ISAF) issued a terse statement announcing that Kam Air would be removed from the blacklist pending the results of an Afghan government investigation into the drug smuggling charges.

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More News On Afghanistan's Kam Air

US military suspends ban on Afghan airline after blacklisting caused diplomatic turbulence -- Washington Post/AP
U.S. Military Suspends Ban on Afghan Airline -- New York Times
U.S. Suspends Afghan Airline Ban -- Radio Free Europe
Kam air row: US suspends ban on Afghan airline -- BBC
US suspends Kam Air ban as Afghanistan probes opium claim -- Global Post/AFP

Biggest Ever Pizza Delivery?

Anyone call for a takeaway: U.S servicemen in Afghanistan are to get 21,000 deep dish takeaways for Superbowl Sunday flown all the way from Chicago

Biggest Ever Pizza delivery? U.S Servicemen In Afghanistan To Get 21,000 Deep Dish Takeaways For Superbowl Sunday… Flown All The Way From Chicago -- Daily Mail

* Promise to 'ensure the pizzas arrive fresh and in excellent condition'
* They will travel on a plane from Illinois to Afghanistan and Kuwait

They may not be able to kick back with their friends and watch the game with a beer on the sofa, but U.S servicemen will still be able to enjoy the traditional pizza on superbowl Sunday.

Those serving in Afghanistan are to get 21,000 deep dish takeaways for superbowl Sunday flown all the way from Chicago.

Pizzas 4 Patriots is teaming up with the international express shipping provider, DHL Express to ensure the troops get their slice of America's biggest pizza day.

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Update #1: Pizzas Touchdown in Afghanistan for Super Bowl -- Military.com
Update #2: Pizzas 4 Patriots and DHL Express Score a Touchdown for U.S. Troops -- Market Watch

My Comment: The pizzas are nice, but I suspect that most soldiers in Afghanistan would prefer doing this.

How The Cell Phone Has Changed Afghanistan

Let Freedom Ring: Gen. Cartwright Says 4G Is America's Lasting Legacy In Afghanistan (Updated) -- Foreign Policy

What will the longest-lasting and perhaps most important legacy of the United States' 11-year war in Afghanistan be? A 4G cell phone network capable of supporting smartphones. That's right, according to retired Marine Corps Gen. James "Hoss" Cartwright, who stepped down as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in August 2011, smartphones are the most important thing the West has introduced to Afghanistan.

"As we leave Afghanistan, the thing that will most affect that culture over the long term is leaving behind that network and those cell phones because they are talking across mountains and social barriers that heretofore have never been crossed by that culture," said Cartwright today at the Center for Strategic and International Studies during a speech on how information technologies are changing war. "I don't know where that's going to take them, but the introduction of that technology is probably far more lasting than anything else that we're going to do in Afghanistan and far more influential."

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My Comment: I am 100% in agreement.

Christmas In Afghanistan

Troops In Afghanistan Celebrate Christmas In Company Of Each Other -- FOX News

U.S. troops in Afghanistan, away from their families and thousands of miles from home, were celebrating Christmas in their own way Tuesday with carols, candles and the company of each other.

Soldiers from the U.S., France and Germany packed a dining hall at the Kabul International Airport for a traditional Christmas meal. As the turkey was carved, they shared thoughts of their families.

"I wish I could be home with my family and friends, but, I mean, I am surrounded by nothing but awesome people, so it is good," U.S. soldier Vanessa Gann said.

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More News On Celebrating Christmas In Afghanistan

American troops take a break from the frontline to share in the holiday spirit over Christmas Eve dinner in Afghanistan -- Daily Mail
Troops downrange 'go with the flow' but think of home on Christmas -- Stars and Stripes
Troops in Afghanistan Find Cheer With a Yule Logon -- New York Times
A Christmas treat for our troops: 9,000 servicemen and women celebrate the day with turkey and a 5k fun run -- Daily Mail
In Afghanistan, a hard holiday season for U.S. troops -- Delaware Online
British troops in Afghanistan celebrate with turkey lunch -- BBC
Turkey and trimmings flown in for UK troops in Afghanistan -- BBC
Christmas wishes from Alabama's soldiers in Afghanistan -- al.com
With their loved ones in Afghanistan, families soldier on for Christmas -- Nola.com

Arms Purchases Are Soaring In Afghanistan

A coalition force member demonstrates weapons tactics to Afghan national police during weapons training in western Afghanistan's Farah province, Dec. 12, 2012. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Pete Thibodeau

Insight: Afghans Turn To AK-47, Fearing Taliban Return Or Civil War -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Afghan father-of-four Mohammad Nasir has a secret he's been keeping from his family.

The aid worker pulls a television bench out from the living-room wall of his Kabul home. Behind it is a carved out shelf, hiding what he hopes will keep loved ones safe when Western troops withdraw by the end of 2014 -- an AK-47 assault rifle.

Arms purchases are soaring in Afghanistan, along with the price of weapons, a sign that many Afghans fear a return of the Taliban, civil war or rising lawlessness.

An assault rifle cost $400 a year ago. Today, some arms dealers are selling them for triple the price.

And it's not just ordinary Afghans who are buying. Warlords who control militias, and former anti-Soviet mujahideen fighters are also boosting the trade.

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My Comment: Not exactly a vote of confidence in the future.

A Rare Admission From The U.S. Army On Afghanistan

Paris, a coalition force military working dog, shows his gentler side as he interacts with children in a village in Farah province, Afghanistan, Dec. 11, 2012. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Pete Thibodeau

U.S. Army Admits To Widespread Cultural Pedophilia In Afghanistan -- Examiner

"Women are for children, boys are for pleasure."

As recently covered by Examiner.com, the U.S. Army has floated a draft of a new training manual to be utilized for troops in the Afghanistan Theater of Operation.

According to the proposed manual, the reason behind many of the allied Afghan troops/police officers attacking and killing American and British personnel is due to ignorance on our part;

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My Comment: My cousins who served in the Soviet Army during their Afghan war said the same thing to me when they returned .... pedophilia in Afghanistan is accepted behavior. Some of my friends are in the Canadian military (I live in Canada now), and they told me the same thing when they came back from their tour in Afghanistan .... they were shocked to learn that pedophilia in Afghanistan is accepted behavior. Bottom line .... Afghanistan's culture is as foreign to us as ours is to them .... and this is one damn good reason why we should no longer be there.

Where Did The Gold Come From?

An Afghan Mystery: Why Are Large Shipments of Gold Leaving the Country? -- New York Times

KABUL, Afghanistan — Packed into hand luggage and tucked into jacket pockets, roughly hewed bars of gold are being flown out of Kabul with increasing regularity, confounding Afghan and American officials who fear money launderers have found a new way to spirit funds from the country.

Most of the gold is being carried on commercial flights destined for Dubai, according to airport security reports and officials. The amounts carried by single couriers are often heavy enough that passengers flying from Kabul to the Persian Gulf emirate would be well advised to heed warnings about the danger of bags falling from overhead compartments. One courier, for instance, carried nearly 60 pounds of gold bars, each about the size of an iPhone, aboard an early morning flight in mid-October, according to an airport security report. The load was worth more than $1.5 million.

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Update: Concerns over growing gold exodus from Afghanistan -- Khaama Press

My Comment: Something does not smell right.

Afghanistan Tied For Most Corrupt Country In The World

Afghanistan's Rock-Bottom Global Corruption Ranking -- Frank Vogl, Huffington Post

The 2012 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), published yesterday, finds Afghanistan at absolute rock bottom, sharing this dismal place with North Korea and Somalia. Despite the flow to Afghanistan over the last decade of hundreds of billions of dollars of Western -- mostly American -- economic and military aid, this country is a rotten cesspool of corruption.

There is a brutal message here for the architects of Western geo-political strategy in general and for those most responsible for the Afghan debacle in particular. It is a message that should have been learned in Iraq, which is a country that does only modestly better than Afghanistan in the graft rankings today. Despite all the diverse experiences of decades, the harsh fact is that Western powers have a zero success rate in establishing decent governance in poor countries embroiled in conflict that have no history of democratic institutions.

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My Comment: NATO is voicing their concerns on Afghan corruption .... but this is nothing new .... and I definitely do not expect this Afghan culture of corruption to change.

Can Afghanistan Tackle Corruption?

My Comment: The culture of corruption is so interwoven in Afghanistan that I have zero expectation that it can be tackled in my lifetime. As for the billions that have been sent to Afghanistan .... we in the West must come to the realization that with the exception of educating millions of children (boys and girls) on how to read and write as well as some health/medical programs .... the rest of the money has been spent (on God knows what) or embezzled.

10,000 U.S. Troops To Remain In Afghanistan After 2014

U.S. Army Sgt. William Russell, center, speaks with an Afghan man, left, through a translator during a key leader engagement in Farah City in Afghanistan's western Farah province, Nov. 18, 2012. Russell is assigned to Provincial Reconstruction Team Farah. U.S. Navy photo by Chief Petty Officer Josh Ives

US Plans To Keep 10,000 Troops In Afghanistan After 2014 -- The Guardian

White House wants small US force to stay on in Afghanistan for training and counter-terrorism against al-Qaida, papers report

The long-term US military presence in Afghanistan is likely to be a "light footprint" of about 10,000 American troops, boosted by a few thousand more soldiers from Nato allies, according to US media reports.

Most foreign combat troops are expected to be out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014, a deadline agreed by Nato and Kabul a few years ago. The White House favours keeping a small force on the ground for some years after that, although diplomats insist they are not seeking permanent bases. Troops would stay to train the Afghan security forces, which still need help with everything from bomb detection to medical evacuation and fuel supplies, and run counter-terrorism campaigns, particularly along the lawless border with Pakistan.

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My Comment: That is not enough soldiers to train the Afghan military .... nor hold any territory. Some special operations may be conducted, but they will be dependent on Afghan intelligence. So .... why keep such a military level in a war zone? Your guess is as good as mine.

Afghan Interpreters Wait For U.S. Visas

Facing Taliban Threats, Afghan Interpreters Wait For U.S. Visas -- Washington Post

KABUL — Of the more than 5,700 Afghans who have applied for U.S. visas under a special program tailored for those who have supported the American war effort, just 32 have been approved, the State Department says, leaving the rest in limbo as foreign forces begin their withdrawal.

The growing, protracted backlog threatens to undermine congressionally approved legislation, as well as the longstanding guarantee that the United States will protect Afghans whose contribution to the American mission has left them hunted and vulnerable.

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My Comment: All bureaucracies move slowly .... a fact that these Afghans who want to leave are quickly realizing.