Special to WorldTribune.com By Brian M Downing Carter Malkasian, War Comes to Garmser: Thirty Years of Conflict on the Afghan Frontier. (London: C Hurst & Co Publishers; New York: Oxford University Press, 2013). A government that is losing to an insurgency isn’t being out-fought, it’s being out-governed. – Bernard Fall In 1972, late in the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Brian M Downing After the absence of meaningful discussions with the Taliban over the winter, the latter’s spring offensive has begun, chiefly with a wave on IED attacks but also a sizable ground attack in eastern Afghanistan. The new fighting season comes amid reports of widespread war-weariness in the country and […]
Special to WorldTribune.com WASHINGTON — The administration of President Barack Obama has dismissed congressional objections to purchase military helicopters from Russia. The Defense Department said it would proceed with the procurement of Mi-17 utility helicopters from Russia. The Pentagon said the helicopters would be transferred to the Afghanistan military. “The Department of Defense has notified […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Brian M Downing Afghan President Hamid Karzai has ordered U.S. special forces out of Wardak province. It lies southwest of and near to Kabul, where he resides – isolated and dependent on foreign protection. The U.S. soldiers are said to have assisted local forces in kidnapping locals and beheading one of […]
Special to WorldTribune.com WASHINGTON — Foreign security contractors for U.S. diplomatic facilities have been deemed inadequate, a report said. The State Department said the majority of foreign security contractors hired to protect U.S. embassies and consulates were deemed insufficient and inadequate. The department’s inspector-general surveyed foreign guards deployed around 86 diplomatic posts. “OIG [Office of […]
John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The Hydra-headed challenge of global terrorism continues as the multi-faceted threat changes and mutates in response to increasingly effective counter-measures. Few countries have been in the cross hairs of violence as has been Pakistan, so it should come as no surprise that in the Security Council’s urgent meeting to […]
Special to WorldTribune.com ABU DHABI — Qatar has formally hosted Afghanistan’s Taliban movement, long aligned with Al Qaida. The Gulf Cooperation Council emirate has announced the establishment of a Taliban presence, which included an office in Doha. In a statement, the Qatari Foreign Ministry said the emirate viewed the Taliban presence as a means to […]
Special to WorldTribune.com Brian M Downing There are new reports of impending talks with the Afghan Taliban. Previous reports have either been baseless or talks took place but led nowhere. The outcome of today’s reports is of course uncertain but there are reasons why the Taliban may now be more willing to seek a negotiated […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Brian M. Downing, FreePressers.com Just a few months ago, U.S.-Pakistani relations were abysmal, perhaps even at a crisis point. An American airstrike had killed 25 or more Pakistani soldiers and Pakistan retaliated by closing off U.S./ISAF supply lines into Afghanistan. Tensions increased and many worried of more border skirmishes along the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By Brian M Downing, FreePressers.com President Obama whisked into Afghanistan unannounced, inked a somewhat nebulous yet significant agreement with Afghan president Hamid Karzai, then quickly returned home. It was an impressive diplomatic coup that guarantees an appreciable U.S. presence in the country over many years, for better or worse. Many regional powers […]