…for a second there, I thought he was referring to Iraq, and pandering to G.W. and the contrived WMDs….
This goes to show that many politicians will spare no effort in hypocritical denigration of others. Blair certainly isn’t someone I’d put on the short list of great leaders…
www.businessinsider.com
With the way the current situation is - both in terms of the tactical and humanitarian situation on the ground around the airport, as well as whatever goals various western governments have - I think it is safe to say that nobody will be getting all of their people out.
Makes sense. Outside of Kabul it’s all basically a no go zone now. I’d expect that priority one is the Embassy staff and they are all most likely out now, then down the list we go in terms of assigned priority. Nasty reading about the alleged friction between the Brits and the US. Going to be very ver interesting to see how the last few flights manage to get off the tarmac as I assume the remaining Afghans within the perimeter and outside the perimeter begin to see that the end is near. They will most likely have to rely on the Taliban to secure the tarmac to allow the last flight to run down the tarmac unopposed….
I suspect you are right.
)
And then finally, after all others have been evac'd, he has to come up with a plan to get his 6000 soldiers out of Kabul. If I were a bad person, I would say that this is the time to strike, as the PR downside for killing soldiers is much preferable to killing civilians. You could claim that it was multiple actors.I suspect you are right.
What a funny world we live in… who would have thought of ‘this’ as being the finale? In the sense that:
- We spent 20 years killing the Taliban, and they did the same to us.
- Now we are asking them to help keep the masses of people from storming the airfield, which they are doing at our request.
- We went to help the people of Afghanistan rid themselves of Taliban rule.
- We went about this by building schools and infrastructure, good will gestures, patrolling villages and back country, and…well…killing the same dickheads we are now asking to help us. Asking them to keep the people away, even though WE were the ones trying to help those people by eliminating Taliban.
Goodness gracious I just got dizzy from trying to wrap my head around the dark irony of it all!
- The frustration on the ground between the Yanks & Brits I imagine will be short lived. Both commanders and forces were thrown into a total shitstorm without a real plan, no idea how to identify who was good to go & who wasnt, being fed droplets of information by their respective governments who were both caught off guard, etc.
I imagine the US commander wasn’t sharing much info at first because he was probably figuring it all out, along with everybody else. Those first few days were extremely fluid, not just with Afghan civilians storming the airfield, but coalition NEO stuff happening also. Just imagine the absolute clusterf**k he is trying to sort out at the time - I imagine he was swimming in conflicting reports, changing intel, conflicting messages, constantly changing narratives, etc. The same goes for the Brits also. I imagine it was more frustration, confusion, lack of a plan for either of them to work with - and looking to each other for a working plan, which neither of them had, etc.
(6000 troops sounds great, but was there a plan to feed them? Provide them with water? Replacement batteries for NVG equipment, radios, etc. Fuel for vehicles. How long is he expected to be there for? Where will those troops use as a base for sleep, food, etc? How many people does he need to evacuate? Does he have a complete list of names? Is he supposed to evacuate non-citizens also? If so, who? Why? When do the planes come back after they depart? What are his ROE if the Taliban show up? Wait, the Taliban are now assisting him in controlling the crowds? Are you sure? WTF is happening!?
Im sure the tensions will go away decently quickly. The politicians who are already calling for a ‘full review of their bilateral relationship’ need to STFU, stop jumping the gun, and focus on the task at hand. They are just making noise, at a time when there doesn’t need to be any.
Both countries have invested huge sums of money to not only be interoperable, but literally deploy together on a constant basis. (USMC squadrons filling out the numbers on HMS carriers is a good example)
When this is all finished, I am fairly certain that relationship will go back to looking much prettier
An enterprising Taliban commander could dress some Taliban up in American uniforms with American kit and blast civilians. Make sure it's recorded and let it leak to the media.
Never say never, but I suspect there's people in the Taliban's info-machine that don't have to read this idea here to already be working on it.
The Taliban & Daesh aren't exactly friends, so I can see some potential scenarios there. Same with a false flag conducted by Afghan "Resistance" in a bid to draw Westerners back in, or delay departure.
This.
At least some of the conventional forces on the ground are Marines assigned to SPMAGTF-CR-CC. They are positioned forward to respond to contingencies in CENTCOM AOR, and have some sustainment capabilities as well as their own air assets. Still not enough for something of this magnitude, which is why they've been reinforced by the US Army & others.
I think a gunfight is upcoming. Damn this is perilous.Looks like that's a firm 'best before date':
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
Evacuations of citizens and vulnerable Afghans beyond the August 31 deadline would be ‘extending occupation’, the Taliban says.
The Taliban will not agree to an extension of the evacuation mission from Afghanistan, and is “warning of consequences” if it is prolonged.
The move would mean “extending occupation” and that is “a red line”, Suhail Shaheen, a member of the Taliban delegation in Doha, the capital of Qatar, said on Monday.
United States President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the “hard and painful” airlift of Americans and tens of thousands of others from Afghanistan’s capital is accelerating, but he would not rule out extending it beyond the August 31 deadline he set before the Taliban’s swift takeover.
The airport has been the scene of chaos since the Taliban seized the Afghan capital on August 15 as US and international forces try to evacuate citizens and vulnerable Afghans. A NATO official has said that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport in the past week.
An Afghan security guard has been killed in a firefight between unknown gunmen and Afghan forces at the north gate of Kabul airport, the German military said, as thousands thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.
Three more people were injured in the gun battle on Monday morning that has also involved German and US forces, the German military said on Twitter.
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
US president to decide on extension of August 31 withdrawal deadline as Taliban warns against ‘extending occupation’.www.aljazeera.com
Posturing on the Talibans' part. The consequences for them will be much greater if they open fire on U.S. troops or aircraft.Looks like that's a firm 'best before date':
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
Evacuations of citizens and vulnerable Afghans beyond the August 31 deadline would be ‘extending occupation’, the Taliban says.
The Taliban will not agree to an extension of the evacuation mission from Afghanistan, and is “warning of consequences” if it is prolonged.
The move would mean “extending occupation” and that is “a red line”, Suhail Shaheen, a member of the Taliban delegation in Doha, the capital of Qatar, said on Monday.
United States President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the “hard and painful” airlift of Americans and tens of thousands of others from Afghanistan’s capital is accelerating, but he would not rule out extending it beyond the August 31 deadline he set before the Taliban’s swift takeover.
The airport has been the scene of chaos since the Taliban seized the Afghan capital on August 15 as US and international forces try to evacuate citizens and vulnerable Afghans. A NATO official has said that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport in the past week.
An Afghan security guard has been killed in a firefight between unknown gunmen and Afghan forces at the north gate of Kabul airport, the German military said, as thousands thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.
Three more people were injured in the gun battle on Monday morning that has also involved German and US forces, the German military said on Twitter.
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
US president to decide on extension of August 31 withdrawal deadline as Taliban warns against ‘extending occupation’.
"is best show of this season in this series ever! Want some more popcorn Ivan?"
More like stay distracted while we take Taiwan
Dear God, what I wouldn't give for Europe and Canada to nut up and stay if the USA pulls out.Looks like that's a firm 'best before date':
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
Evacuations of citizens and vulnerable Afghans beyond the August 31 deadline would be ‘extending occupation’, the Taliban says.
The Taliban will not agree to an extension of the evacuation mission from Afghanistan, and is “warning of consequences” if it is prolonged.
The move would mean “extending occupation” and that is “a red line”, Suhail Shaheen, a member of the Taliban delegation in Doha, the capital of Qatar, said on Monday.
United States President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the “hard and painful” airlift of Americans and tens of thousands of others from Afghanistan’s capital is accelerating, but he would not rule out extending it beyond the August 31 deadline he set before the Taliban’s swift takeover.
The airport has been the scene of chaos since the Taliban seized the Afghan capital on August 15 as US and international forces try to evacuate citizens and vulnerable Afghans. A NATO official has said that at least 20 people have died in and around the airport in the past week.
An Afghan security guard has been killed in a firefight between unknown gunmen and Afghan forces at the north gate of Kabul airport, the German military said, as thousands thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.
Three more people were injured in the gun battle on Monday morning that has also involved German and US forces, the German military said on Twitter.
Taliban warns of ‘consequences’ if US delays withdrawal
US president to decide on extension of August 31 withdrawal deadline as Taliban warns against ‘extending occupation’.
