So basically this war is officially lost. Taliban and U.S. Agree to Peace Talks

[Techniec]

That option was always on the table but Bush wanted to run for re-election as a "wartime president"

Bush and Company wanted "fireworks"

 

[Dusty Bake Activate]

Taliban and Al Qaeda are not the same entity. The Taliban indicated they were willing to give up Al Qaeda in exchange for no invasion in 2001 and the U.S. refused.

End result is a massive failure no matter how you characterize it. A gazillion dollars, thousands of lives, untold damage and they could not defeat the Taliban or even get them to budge on conditions for peace talks.

They offered up Bin Laden before 9/11.

Al-Jazeera: Taliban offered to give up bin Laden before 9/11

But yeah I read this story yesterday with a mixture of and Why didn't they just do this a decade ago and saved all these billions of dollars, human lives, and potential blowback?

It amazes me how these supposed learned men in Washington keep pushing this retarded, reckless, aimless foreign policy in the modern post-Cold War world.

 

[theworldismine13]

I think this is good, it's the Taliban that are giving up, they are not coming back into power, they will get some crumbs but that's about it

 

[Techniec]

I think this is good, it's the Taliban that are giving up, they are not coming back into power, they will get some crumbs but that's about it

Dumb motherfuker still sticking to the story

 

[theworldismine13]

Dumb motherfuker still sticking to the story

yeah i am, the afghan government is still standing unlike what you predicted, obama did the right thing by sending more troops to prop it up, the americans have officially handed security over to the afghans and the american empire is still standing and there will be an orderly withdrawal

the taliban can negotiate all they want, at the end of the day they will have to accept the constitution

 

[Type Username Here]

The war was lost when the US gave up a certain victory to prolong a war.

The amount of territory the US gave up is astronomical. Not to mention continuing aiding a country that was pumping money and giving shelter to supply lines and enemy command structure. THe Bush ended up splitting our forces to take to Iraq.

Military victory was never the objective there.

 

[K.O.D]

yeah i am, the afghan government is still standing unlike what you predicted, obama did the right thing by sending more troops to prop it up, the americans have officially handed security over to the afghans and the american empire is still standing and there will be an orderly withdrawal

the taliban can negotiate all they want, at the end of the day they will have to accept the constitution

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/29/w...fghan-leaders-office.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

'' KABUL, Afghanistan — For more than a decade, wads of American dollars packed into suitcases, backpacks and, on occasion, plastic shopping bags have been dropped off every month or so at the offices of Afghanistan’s president — courtesy of the Central Intelligence Agency.

All told, tens of millions of dollars have flowed from the C.I.A. to the office of President Hamid Karzai, according to current and former advisers to the Afghan leader.

“We called it ‘ghost money,’ ” said Khalil Roman, who served as Mr. Karzai’s deputy chief of staff from 2002 until 2005. “It came in secret, and it left in secret.”

The C.I.A., which declined to comment for this article, has long been known to support some relatives and close aides of Mr. Karzai. But the new accounts of off-the-books cash delivered directly to his office show payments on a vaster scale, and with a far greater impact on everyday governing.

Moreover, there is little evidence that the payments bought the influence the C.I.A. sought. Instead, some American officials said, the cash has fueled corruption and empowered warlords, undermining Washington’s exit strategy from Afghanistan.

“The biggest source of corruption in Afghanistan,” one American official said, “was the United States.” ''

 

[Techniec]

yeah i am, the afghan government is still standing unlike what you predicted, obama did the right thing by sending more troops to prop it up, the americans have officially handed security over to the afghans and the american empire is still standing and there will be an orderly withdrawal

the taliban can negotiate all they want, at the end of the day they will have to accept the constitution

Youre a fukin idiot, every fact on the ground indicates as such

i was saying they should negotiate 5 yrs ago you were saying more troops were needed but the outcome is the same ya retard

the troops that you advocated has had no bearing on the outcome which is negotiations

these same exact negotiations couldve happened pre Obama

so the surge was useless

as i already explained to you years ago, the Taliban caveat that they didnt need to be part of the govt was on the tables YEARS AGO pre Obama

do you understand english? is all this clear?

the American caveat that Al Qaeda had to be renounced, arms layed down and the constitution had to be accepted is out the window

you lost, vindicated, proven, certified and verified

youre a monkey with no knowledge, dont ever open ya fukin mouth again around adults

 

[Just like bruddas]

we not dealing with the old Taliban, we dealing with the younger smarter generation. Commanders that had training in Pakistan, Iran, Syria etc. How you think the US death rate rose so high? These nikkas using flanking maneuvers, artillery from local mortar teams, their snipers are hitting ISA troops from damn near half a mile and its not foreign fighters, home grown training and some of them got train from the ANA.


Too keep it real we never went hard on AQ, it was mainly the old taliban. After a quick hitaus and when we left to fight in Iraq, they regrouped, got training etc. Got no choice but to talk with them

 

[theworldismine13]

Youre a fukin idiot, every fact on the ground indicates as such

i was saying they should negotiate 5 yrs ago you were saying more troops were needed but the outcome is the same ya retard

the troops that you advocated has had no bearing on the outcome which is negotiations

these same exact negotiations couldve happened pre Obama

so the surge was useless

as i already explained to you years ago, the Taliban caveat that they didnt need to be part of the govt was on the tables YEARS AGO pre Obama

do you understand english? is all this clear?

the American caveat that Al Qaeda had to be renounced, arms layed down and the constitution had to be accepted is out the window

you lost, vindicated, proven, certified and verified

youre a monkey with no knowledge, dont ever open ya fukin mouth again around adults

and again, the afghan government was to weak to negotiate 5 years ago, the surge successfully bolstered the afghan government to the point where the us can hand off security to them

you are confusing your personal interests with american interests, it is correct that the us could have negotiated an end by handing over power to the taliban but that was not in american interests

it was in american interests to bolster the afghan government and then have the afghan government work something out with taliban, which is what will happen

the notion that there was a "taliban caveat" that they agreed to not be part of the government is bullshyt, no taliban of any significance has ever said anything like that and till right now they barely even recognize the government

i dont know what it is you are reading, it is the taliban that announced that they are separating themselves from al queda and outside forces, they are the ones announcing that they want peace talks and as for the constitution, its not going anywhere, at the end of the day the taliban will have to accept the constitution and the afghan government, that is what the negotaitons are about

 

[SuikodenII]

Yup. War had NO SENSE AT ALL. Lost decade, lives, money (depends for who obviously) and fukked up the world for everyone.

It made..."cents"....for quite a few

 

[Hans Wurst]

money > lives

 

[Mr. Pink]

The US should have learned from their British cousins that wars against 'terrorists' are unwinable. This is exactly what happened between the UK and the Provisional IRA, only on a bigger scale. For 30 years the British threw everything they had at the IRA: the Army, MI6, the fukking SAS, they trained loyalist death squads, everything. In the end even they had to admit a stalemate and engage in peace talks.

Just like the PIRA, the Taliban can't be defeated either. They're like cockroaches. No matter how many of them you kill or how many networks and cells you "dismantle", they'll just keep coming back.

 

[theworldismine13]

i dont know how the hell yall are reading into this, but overall this is a loss for the taliban, it pretty much signals that they will never hold any real power which is what the us wanted in the first place

 

[Techniec]

and again, the afghan government was to weak to negotiate 5 years ago, the surge successfully bolstered the afghan government to the point where the us can hand off security to them

Oh yah thats why the Taliban still call them selves the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and had their Flag by their side at the press conference.

Because theyre absolutely petrified of the Afghan government

the notion that there was a "taliban caveat" that they agreed to not be part of the government is bullshyt, no taliban of any significance has ever said anything like that and till right now they barely even recognize the government

they said so recently
Taliban Hints At Eventual Power Sharing In Afghanistan

they said so last year
Taliban Statement: Open to Power-Sharing in Afghanistan -- News from Antiwar.com

they said so in 2007
http://www.parl.gc.ca/content/lop/researchpublications/prb0727-e.pdf

and as for the constitution, its not going anywhere, at the end of the day the taliban will have to accept the constitution and the afghan government, that is what the negotaitons are about

Thats why the Afghan government is boycotting talks? Because the Taliban are tellin em fukk you we only talk to Americans

BBC News - Afghan government to boycott Taliban peace talks

America went from demanding the Taliban recognize the constitution to hoping that can be an outcome of negotiations

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/19/w...alks-to-end-afghan-war.html?pagewanted=2&_r=0

Taliban meanwhile saying they have their own constitution

Taliban calls for new constitution in French talks - France - Afghanistan - RFI

Keep tap dancing and spinning