The President spoke on national TV tonight to discuss policy regarding the war in Afghanistan. It was a very good speech which contained a few key points.
First, and for me, most important, Trump said that he recognized that a quick withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan would lead to unacceptable results. It would create a vacuum like the one Obama created by hightailing it out of Iraq in 2011; that vacuum was filled by ISIS and Iran. Particularly since there are more terrorist groups operating in the Afghanistan region than anywhere else on earth, we cannot take steps to recreate that nation as a safe haven for terrorist activities. One 9-11 designed in Afghanistan is enough.
Second, the USA will no longer stand silent as Pakistan gives safe haven to terrorists like the Taliban. We will expect cooperation from the Pakistanis on this point or there will be consequences. This is enormously important. Hopefully, it will motivate the Pakistanis to get more involved in ending terrorism.
Third, the USA will not operate by time tables and public announcements of coming battles. This too was a slam of the Obama policy of setting cut off dates and having discussions in public of troop levels and distributions. The Taliban will not know when more troops might arrive. Nor will the Taliban know how many are coming or where they will be going. This will make it much harder for the Taliban to plan their strategy.
Fourth, the USA is calling on its allies to step up their commitments to the Afghan war. During the Obama years, America's allies and their contributions in Afghanistan were nothing more than an afterthought. If we can actually get real help from NATO, it would be an important addition.
This speech is not going to change events in Afghanistan tomorrow. It may not even change things three months from now. It does, however, make clear that in the long run, we now have a leader whose goal is victory in Afghanistan. The Obama policy of kicking the can down the road has ended. That's a big plus for this nation.
First, and for me, most important, Trump said that he recognized that a quick withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan would lead to unacceptable results. It would create a vacuum like the one Obama created by hightailing it out of Iraq in 2011; that vacuum was filled by ISIS and Iran. Particularly since there are more terrorist groups operating in the Afghanistan region than anywhere else on earth, we cannot take steps to recreate that nation as a safe haven for terrorist activities. One 9-11 designed in Afghanistan is enough.
Second, the USA will no longer stand silent as Pakistan gives safe haven to terrorists like the Taliban. We will expect cooperation from the Pakistanis on this point or there will be consequences. This is enormously important. Hopefully, it will motivate the Pakistanis to get more involved in ending terrorism.
Third, the USA will not operate by time tables and public announcements of coming battles. This too was a slam of the Obama policy of setting cut off dates and having discussions in public of troop levels and distributions. The Taliban will not know when more troops might arrive. Nor will the Taliban know how many are coming or where they will be going. This will make it much harder for the Taliban to plan their strategy.
Fourth, the USA is calling on its allies to step up their commitments to the Afghan war. During the Obama years, America's allies and their contributions in Afghanistan were nothing more than an afterthought. If we can actually get real help from NATO, it would be an important addition.
This speech is not going to change events in Afghanistan tomorrow. It may not even change things three months from now. It does, however, make clear that in the long run, we now have a leader whose goal is victory in Afghanistan. The Obama policy of kicking the can down the road has ended. That's a big plus for this nation.
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