Rantburg

Today's Front Page   View All of Wed 05/28/2025 View Tue 05/27/2025 View Mon 05/26/2025 View Sun 05/25/2025 View Sat 05/24/2025 View Fri 05/23/2025 View Thu 05/22/2025
2021-10-05 Afghanistan
US general says Afghanistan collapse rooted in Trump-Taliban deal
[Aljazeera] Senior military officials in the United States have linked the collapse of the Afghan government and its security forces in August to former President Donald Trump’s deal with the Taliban in 2020 promising a complete withdrawal of US troops.

General Frank McKenzie, the head of Central Command, told the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday that once the US troop presence was pushed below 2,500 as part of Washington’s bid to complete a total withdrawal by the end of August, the unravelling of the US-backed Afghan government accelerated.

"The signing of the Doha agreement had a really pernicious effect on the government of Afghanistan and on its military — psychological more than anything else, but we set a date — certain for when we were going to leave and when they could expect all assistance to end," McKenzie said.

He was referring to a February 29, 2020, agreement that the Trump administration signed with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, in which the US promised to fully withdraw its troops by May 2021 and the Taliban committed to several conditions, including stopping attacks on US and coalition forces.

The stated objective was to promote a peace negotiation between the Taliban and the Afghan government, but that diplomatic effort had failed to gain traction before former US President Donald Trump was replaced by President Joe Biden in January.
Posted by Besoeker 2021-10-05 07:12|| || Front Page|| [11130 views ]  Top
 File under: Taliban/IEA 

#1 I blame the January 30 to February 3, 1945 Malta Conference, the fall of Rome, the original sin.
Posted by Besoeker 2021-10-05 07:25||   2021-10-05 07:25|| Front Page Top

#2 At the Congressional hearings General Frank McKenzie appeared a petulant, nasty blame-shifter, and the type of officer you'd love to smack in the mouth.
Posted by Bertie Crains2651 2021-10-05 08:36||   2021-10-05 08:36|| Front Page Top

#3 When will you resign, you POS?
Posted by Frank G 2021-10-05 08:37||   2021-10-05 08:37|| Front Page Top

#4 nope nope nope, y'all and the "president" are to blame. That was how it was under Trump, blamed for everything whether he was in it or not. So eat shit.
Posted by Chris 2021-10-05 08:45||   2021-10-05 08:45|| Front Page Top

#5 We don't buy it and this fuck up is on you and your ilk.
Posted by DarthVader 2021-10-05 08:57||   2021-10-05 08:57|| Front Page Top

#6 I blame Colin Powell and George W. Bush.

The rot set in early.
Posted by Elmerert Hupens2660 2021-10-05 09:02||   2021-10-05 09:02|| Front Page Top

#7 So you blame Trump for the plan?

Who's responsible for the execution of the plan?
Posted by Bobby 2021-10-05 10:04||   2021-10-05 10:04|| Front Page Top

#8 Fortunately grounding the Afghan air force by virtue of forcing the maintenance contractors out of the country had nothing to do with it. That sure is a relief! Running away from Bagram in the middle of the night and releasing a herd of blood thirsty goat molesters was a real plus as well.

Root causes? I think the tenor and initiative irrevocably changed after the Defenestration of Prague.
Posted by Cesare 2021-10-05 10:07||   2021-10-05 10:07|| Front Page Top

#9 Twenty years of you sending 'happy and glad' reports up the chain had nothing to do with it. /sarc
Posted by Procopius2k 2021-10-05 10:10||   2021-10-05 10:10|| Front Page Top

#10 ☻ ☺
Note to all Biden Handlers.
General Frank McKenzie, has toed the line as ordered.

He will be promoted 1 star over the next 6 month and spared in the upcoming DEFUND THE MILITARY Purged planned early next year. ☺ ☻
Posted by NN2N1 2021-10-05 10:25||   2021-10-05 10:25|| Front Page Top

#11 Sorry General, youhad 2 decades, and a lot of braver and honorable troops, and you allowed the politicians and political officers (especially under Obama) to throw away those troops, and lose the war instead of standing tall and demanding real goals and definite outcomes instead of the forever war you advocated and emplaced.

Fuck you general, don't try to point fingers at others for your cowardice in confronting an incompetent president over his stupid cut and run strategy and the absolute incompetence with which you and your peers handled the departure.

If you had any honor and courage, you'd resign. Cowardly sycophants and political lackey like you lose wars, get soldiers killed needlessly and endanger the nation for your political gains.
Posted by Chealing Chomotle4158 2021-10-05 12:18||   2021-10-05 12:18|| Front Page Top

#12 Appropriate graphic except the material being spread on the crops is actually good for something.
Posted by Abu Uluque 2021-10-05 12:39||   2021-10-05 12:39|| Front Page Top

#13 Given the rules of engagement the troops were forced to work under, as well as the tribal nature of Afghanistan, we could never have actually won there. Unless we were willing to do to them what we did to Germany and Japan in WWII.
However, I am sure that under Trump, the ultimate withdrawal would have been done in a much more orderly fashion.
Yes, the Taliban would have been back in power, but we would have been spared the sight of people falling from airplanes; American citizens, green card holders, SIVs, and others being stranded.
The Taliban might have ended up with most of the weapons that we had given to the Afghan army, but every American vehicle left behind would have been disabled or destroyed.
Posted by Rambler in Virginia 2021-10-05 12:46||   2021-10-05 12:46|| Front Page Top

#14 Really. Because it sounds like about ten years ago the seeds were planted for a woke brass who would get their funding and chance to play Rainbow 6 Generals and toy around with HUMINT theories so long as the war kept going and those getting boodle continue getting paid.

A highly profitable stalemate, and now that brass is rewarded by getting to remold the military in their own form.

"Welcome to the 'Stan trooper....hey, I recognize this name, your dad and I fought in this valley back in '04. How's the old man? Suicide, that's too bad. Hey, I want you to take your platoon down to that village with this bag of cash. You should receive a briefcase, bring that directly to me."
Posted by swksvolFF 2021-10-05 12:50||   2021-10-05 12:50|| Front Page Top

#15 Was General McKenzie saying this at the time of the Doha agreement, when Trump was still the commander-in-chief? Did he offer his resignation at the time?
Posted by Matt 2021-10-05 13:16||   2021-10-05 13:16|| Front Page Top

#16 #1
And don't forget the Edict of Turda.
Posted by Fred 2021-10-05 15:28||   2021-10-05 15:28|| Front Page Top

#17 Biden ass kisser.
Posted by Ebbomoger Speaking for Boskone4589 2021-10-05 15:29||   2021-10-05 15:29|| Front Page Top

#18 #FJB's Ass-Kissing Retinue
Posted by Sheba tse Tung4690 2021-10-05 16:06||   2021-10-05 16:06|| Front Page Top

#19 These Flag Officers are slime


Let's go Brandon.
Posted by newc 2021-10-05 16:11||   2021-10-05 16:11|| Front Page Top

#20 Having troops clean the walls and sweep the floors, instead of evacuating pallets of cash and weapon systems?

State was busy drawing up a lawsuit against Poland and Clippy was making sure everyone showed to the Drag Queen Base Dance.

Good thing we had the Soldier's General hot on the scene....
Honk Honk, guess who's turning the corner in Afghanistan - this guy in his bitchin' Hilux - Choo Choo motherfuckers! Got the boom boom Z.U. twenty three option baby! Whaaaat?! Even got the Dukes of Peshwar Valley flag on the hood, losers. Best part, didn't cost me a thing. Cost those 50 assholes plenty, I'll tell ya. Jay Leno's garage? Jay Leno's garage? The daffuck is Jay Leno?
Posted by swksvolFF 2021-10-05 16:52||   2021-10-05 16:52|| Front Page Top

#21 We were in Afghanistan for about 20 years and spent somewhere between $1-2 trillion. We had around 2300 KIA and another 20,000 injured. Allies had additional casualties. Throughout the 20 years, the question: "Will the Afghans be able to stand up and defend their country?" was never satisfactorily answered. So "No" this clustetfuck cannot be laid on Trump. Damned perfumed generals.
Posted by JohnQC 2021-10-05 17:10||   2021-10-05 17:10|| Front Page Top

#22 These mofo's are creating a Weimar situation in this country. Retarded and craven elites pissing on our war dead and selling out the country to foreign interests.
Creating hyperinflation.
Destroying our industrial base.
Sicc'ing Antifa (yes, that one) on us and unleashing a new wave of violent black shakedown artists.
Destroying public order.
Creating a culture of toxic garbage, used to hook our young and make them stupid zombies.

All for their foolish globalism.

We know where Weimar leads. This will not end well.
Posted by Sheba tse Tung4690 2021-10-05 17:37||   2021-10-05 17:37|| Front Page Top

#23 #23 This isn't Weimar it's worse. Weimar was a lot of happenstance and circumstance. Based on the constancy of tactics and direction this would appear to be a plan.
Posted by Cesare 2021-10-05 17:47||   2021-10-05 17:47|| Front Page Top

#24 I had heard that the military convinced Trump to leave a force of 2-3000 and Biden decided not to leave any presence. If that is true I expect a Trump comment before long, and I expect there are documentation even if its emails and such.
Posted by rjschwarz 2021-10-05 22:15||   2021-10-05 22:15|| Front Page Top

08:52 Matt
08:38 Gleng Whaick2262
08:35 Gleng Whaick2262
08:35 Gleng Whaick2262
08:33 Gleng Whaick2262
08:32 Gleng Whaick2262
08:31 Gleng Whaick2262
08:28 Gleng Whaick2262
08:24 Matt
08:20 SteveS
07:43 Procopius2k
07:42 BrerRabbit
07:42 Procopius2k
07:39 Procopius2k
07:36 Procopius2k
07:35 Procopius2k
07:34 trailing wife
07:31 Procopius2k
07:30 NN2N1
07:22 NN2N1
07:18 trailing wife
07:14 Richard Aubrey
07:10 NN2N1
07:09 Besoeker









Paypal:
Google
Search WWW Search rantburg.com