By The Editorial Board
OCT. 1, 2015
One cannot help but feel horror and déjà vu as the battle over the northern Afghan city of Kunduz unfolds. On Monday, the Taliban seized the city, the first provincial capital to fall to the militants since they were routed by the United States in the war after September 2001.
On Wednesday, American warplanes were back conducting airstrikes, while Special Operations Forces were on the ground helping the Afghan government’s struggling security forces reclaim Kunduz. But Afghan troops were blocked by the Taliban from even reaching the besieged city, while the security of the nearby capital of Baghlan Province appeared under threat.
Nearly a year after the official end of NATO’s combat mission in Afghanistan, this military failure confirms the worst fears about the weaknesses of the Afghan forces. Some 7,000 government forces and militiamen were overcome by far fewer Taliban in Kunduz. This victory could embolden those insurgents, as well as radicals like the Islamic State that have made serious gains in Iraq and Syria, and undermine an Afghan unity government that, however flawed, still offers some chance of stabilizing the country.
For the United States to provide emergency assistance in the fight for Kunduz is one thing. But it must not be drawn back into a war that cannot be ended except by the Afghan government itself. Yet there are signs this is happening, as the security situation has deteriorated. Gen. John Campbell, who commands NATO and American forces in Afghanistan, now exerts so much influence at the top levels of the Afghan government that some Afghans refer to him as the country’s de facto defense minister.
Whether tactical airstrikes will help in retaking Kunduz or other areas under attack is questionable without having trained ground forces willing to take the field. Pakistan’s continuing support for the Taliban and its refusal to press the militants to engage in serious peace talks is a major reason the war continues.
While that and other challenges may be beyond the government’s control, the reality remains that the Afghan security forces have a very high attrition rate, have suffered a 50 percent increase in casualties in the first six months of this year compared with last year and have been spread thin as the Taliban opened new fronts in all parts of the country. Afghan officials have known for some time the Taliban were infiltrating Kunduz, and it’s unclear why adequate defensive steps weren’t taken.
A recent report on lessons learned in Afghanistan and Iraq by the National Defense University cites many problems with America’s strategy of trying to train and equip local forces to defend their own countries. But the bottom line is that it is virtually impossible to establish reliable armies, willing to fight for something bigger than themselves in countries without effective government.
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In an interview with The Times on Wednesday, Abdullah Abdullah, Afghanistan’s chief executive, the government’s second highest official, acknowledged that Afghans are losing patience with the government and want it to function better. But he insisted that the Afghan people “don’t see the Taliban as saviors” and the government can still deliver a better future.
Mr. Abdullah said Mr. Obama should keep American forces at the current level of about 10,000 troops indefinitely to help fight the Taliban threat. But even if that were to happen, there is little reason to believe that an indefinite American military presence is the answer.
Source: http://goo.gl/Eg8l89
9:34 PM
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