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Omar Sobhani / AP
Gen. John Allen, left, the outgoing U.S. and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) commander in Afghanistan stand with Gen. Joseph Dunford who replaced him during a changing of command ceremony in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday.
KABUL, Afghanistan - Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford took over Sunday as the new and probably last commander of all U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan.
The American-led NATO coalition is entering the final stretch of its participation in a war that will have lasted more than 13 years when most foreign combat troops pull out at the end of 2014.
Dunford took over leadership of the International Security Assistance Force, and a smaller but separate detachment of American troops, from Marine Gen. John Allen, who had led them for the past 19 months.
"Today is not about change, it's about continuity," Dunford told a gathering of coalition military leaders and Afghan officials. "What's not changed is the growing capability of our Afghan partners, the Afghan national security forces. What's not changed is our commitment, more importantly, what's not changed is the inevitability of our success."
He takes charge at a critical time for President Barack Obama and the military. NATO decided at its 2010 summit in Lisbon to withdraw major combat units, but to continue training and funding Afghan troops and leave a residual force to hunt down al-Qaida and other terrorist groups.
Aref Karimi / AFP - Getty Images
More than ten years after the beginning of the war, Afghanistan faces external pressure to reform as well as ongoing internal conflicts.
Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said "much work lies ahead" for Dunford as he tries to meet those objectives while at the same time withdrawing about 100,000 foreign troops, including 66,000 from the United States.
Dunford, from Boston, Massachusetts, will face serious challenges as he tries to accommodate an accelerated timetable for handing over the lead for security responsibility to Afghan forces this spring — instead of late summer as originally planned.
"I told him our victory here will never be marked by a parade or a point in time on a calendar when victory is declared. This insurgency will be defeated over time by the legitimate and well-trained Afghan forces that are emerging today and who are taking the field in full force this spring," Allen said.
He added that success would be described as an "Afghan force defending Afghan people, and enabling an Afghan government to serve its citizens. This is victory; this is what winning looks like." Although the Afghan security forces are almost at their full strength of 352,000, it is unclear if they are yet ready to take on the fight by themselves.
Also attending the ceremony were U.S. Marine Corps Gen. James N. Mattis, Commander, U.S. Central Command, and Gen. James Amos, head of the Marine Corps. President Hamid Karzai did not attend.
More work needed
Before departing, Allen admitted that the Afghans still need much work to become an effective and self-sufficient fighting machine, but he said a vast improvement in their abilities was behind a decision to accelerate the timetable for putting them in the lead nationwide this spring when the traditional fighting season begins.
Obama said last month that the Afghans would take over this spring instead of late summer — a decision that could allow the speedier withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan.
It is also unclear when the remaining 66,000 U.S. troops would return home, or how many American soldiers will remain after the end of 2014.
Obama may use his State of the Union address on Tuesday to announce the next steps for concluding the war and a timetable for withdrawal along with plans for a residual force post-2014.
Much of that depends on the U.S. negotiating a bilateral security agreement with the government that includes the contentious issue of immunity from Afghan prosecution for any U.S. forces that would remain here after 2014. Karzai has said he will put any such decision in the hands of a council of Afghan elders, known as a Loya Jirga.
Although Dempsey said earlier in the week that the United States had plans to leave a residual force, a failure to strike a deal on immunity would torpedo any security agreement and lead to a complete pullout of U.S. forces after 2014 — as it did in post-war Iraq.
It is widely believed that no NATO-member nation would allow its troops to remain after 2014 to train, or engage in counterterrorism activities, without a similar deal.
The head of NATO joint command in Europe, German Gen. Hans-Lothar Domrose, said the alliance was already making plans for a post-2014 presence, plans he said that were "all well advanced."
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Leave a Comment:
"The American-led NATO coalition is entering the final stretch of its participation in a war that will have lasted more than 13 years when most foreign combat troops pull out at the end of 2014."
Right from the beginning, Afghan war was destined to end in disaster.
Who with little sense will have backstabbing and ungrateful Pakis as strategic allies?
In Afghanistan, Pakis have backstabbed the US and NATO forces big time. Half of NATO forces deaths are due to ungrateful and backstabbing Pakis.
When the NATO forces were entering Kandahar in 2001, Pakis airlifted key al-Qaida, Taliban, ISI and others militants by back door from Kandahar.
This includes Mullah Omar, Osama and many including Paki Haqqani militant network leaders.
Hope people remember about Pakis sheltering Osama.
Prime culprit and criminal Paki Gen Mush was Bush, Jr's pal!
Also few with little knowledge of Afghanistan, Iraq, Islam and allies like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, go for war another 2003 Iraqi war!
At least, hope politicians, military advisors, media and war mongers learn some lessons from Afghan war.
Arm-chair, Monday-morning Quarterbacking with International Policy from the other side of a PC screen is not helpful. It is a mess but the internal, partisan squabbling only feeds the confusion viewed around the world re US Foreign Policy. It makes each scenario ripe of disaster. The incoherent US response to the Muslim Brotherhood and Arab Spring does not help...but who is held accountable? No one. There is no accountability. Hence, no serious thinking and analysis on the way forward for any part of the world, including Afghanistan. Viet Nam taught us not to mix politics with military action. They are separate but should be parallel tracks.
I wish that the U. S. will give up on the quixotic idea that we are going to democratize a nation that for millennia have been tribal in nature.
Louie Bee: I don't disagree but do not think that was what brought us there in the first place...
I do prefer the somewhat isolationist period when we actually took care of ourselves and our own citizens. My youngest son goes there this Spring...I would hope he remains safe, does not experience horrors firsthand, and definitely would want him home instead; but proud he is serving our Nation.
Hey Jonathan I agree Afghanistan's and Pakistan's governments are run by back stabbing drug peddling pedophiles in love with Mohamed's message of jihad against the infidel. Yet once again Americans have been lied to by first Clinton then Bush then Obama. We will be there or some other Muslim dominated country as long as Americans keep voting this two party one agenda system that is destroying America.
Pakistan has nuclear missiles. If we stop giving them money(AID) and just leave the country, there is the possibility that those nuclear missiles/warheads could end up in the hands of those who would be very happy to use them against us or India. Use common sense. If anyone shoots a ICBM at us, we will shoot back. If terrorist in Pakistan gets and shoots any missiles into India, India will shoot back. Where will that leave the rest of the world that has nukes. Everyone will have their nukes warmed up and ready to shoot. Also, folks remember, we are just beginning to build our anti-ballistic missile defense. Is it cheaper to pay them and be in a position to keep an eye on those nukes than it would be to jump ship and run away and deal with the possibility of those nukes exploding in our country another day. PAY them, keep an eye on those nukes, and like we are doing now: keep on building our anti-missile defense/ testing the GBI missiles. This is the same position Clinton, Bush and now Obama have to deal with. So will the next President Democratic or Republican.
Umm all these who say that Pakistan “backstabbed” the US seem to be of the opinion that Pakistan’s and the US’s goals are one in the same. They are not, Pakistan had no problem with the Taliban until America said it did, until then they and the Taliban got on fine and by all accounts continue to do so because they realise they need each other more then they need the US. After all Pakistan needs the Taliban so they have a friendly government in control of Afghanistan which would give them strategic depth in a war with India. Whereas the Taliban need Pakistan as it gives them access to funding from states like Saudi and the crazy Wahhabi sect that controls religion there and promotes Jihad.
Pakistan will have bloody civil wars and some Islamists may get their hands on Paki nukes.
It will be most foolish to imagine that events in Pakistan can be controlled by throwing our tax monies.
A good amount of tax monies went to Islamists fighting NATO forces. Indirectly, we paid our tax monies to injure and kill our soldiers.
Hope people remember: Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were invented by the British and are in the map today due to US, British and other European nations help.
Saddam would have wiped out Saudi Arabia like Kuwait.
India or Russia would have wiped out Pakistan.
The only option left is to carpet bomb Paki nuke areas and a few most rabid Islamic militant areas such that they won't use them as spring boards to attack us.
Carpet bomb Pakistan "nuke areas" lol yeah like that'll work, do you know anything about the limitations of air power?
Losmuertos: Do you remember the 1967 Israel vs rest Gulf war and 1991 Iraqi war?
Do you understand that the war strategies go on changing with times?
In 1967, Israel took out most of the Egyptian air force right on the ground at the beginning itself!
1991 Iraqi war was one of the wars with least losses and maxmum damages.
NATO forces bombed Saddam's brave and "best" IVth division while running away from battles in Basra!
Also NATO forces killed many Saddam's forces right in their bunkers by bombings and later bulldozing.
Lastly, it appears that you don't have much ideas of Paki army, one of the most corrupt and useless!
Lastly, one should not make the mistake of trusting a Paki.
Lol another one of those baseless ethnic/racial based comments like “never trust a Chinaman, Irishman, Englishman, American” I find they say more about the person that makes such a comment then about the people they are about.
Now as for your comments about the 6 Day War and the Iraq war, well I’ll assume you are aware that Israel managed to achieve such success because they launched a sneak attack that since Egypt did not expect an attack they were taken by complete surprise. Now unfortunately Pakistan cannot be relied upon to partake in such complacency. Now I know that America has stealth aircraft, but those are all based in the US and trying to coordinate a strike in which planes leave multiple airbases from around the world to strike at different targets to be able to achieve the gaols of “carpet bombing Paki nuke areas” would be a planning and logistical feat that would be very difficult and not really worth the reward. Likewise I’m sure you are aware that most of the air success in Iraq was when Saddam’s forces were on the run and pretty much confined to one highway. Then yes it was open season, but other than that the air campaign was only successful when given exact targets. Which again is not as likely in Pakistan as not only do Pakistan have a habit of keeping their nukes mobile, but also have access to a mountain range that is riddled with cave networks, so short of sending in special forces to pinpoint these things and then making sure you have a strong enough bunker buster (and yes there is a limit to how far they can go) then just using air power to take them out is pretty much a waste of bombs. Oh and that is also to say that if they “carpet bombed” as you want no special forces trooper is really going to want to look for them as most of them don’t want to be in a zone that is about to be carpet bombed. I hope you understand that.
Oh and I do have ideas about the Pakistani military, but I’d rather share them with someone else. Like maybe someone who can use paragraphs.
Losmuertos: Attacks are sometimes done when one expects them least.
That was Yom Kipper 1967 reply from Israel for Egypt trying to be too smart!
It is like the Islamic suicide bombings.
Sometimes, suicide bombings are done wearing burkhas.
After, Pakistan, a pure Islamic nation was formed in 1947, Pakis fought four wars with India.
They lost all of them badly despite India having another bunch of very poor and corrupt leadership.
In 1971, Pakis did genocides of about four million Hindus, Buddhists, moderate Muslims and females in the current Bangladesh.
India won the 1971 war against Pakis with Pakis establishing a world record in surrender of more than 90000 Paki soldiers.
India won the war within a month.
In all the wars against India, the US, British, and European nations sided with Pakistan.
In 1971, Nixon sent the US nuclear submarines and sided with Pakis. Of course, Nixon and that Kissinger had to withdraw them later.
USSR/Russia would have wiped out Pakistan clean but for the US help.
Still Pakis backstabbed NATO forces big time in Afghanistan.
Do you know what you are posting?
You are trying to be too smart for what you know and understand.
You may jump on all sides. But within two decades Pakistan will not be there on the map.
Even likes of you can't save Pakis.
That was fine rant
you make much sense
me not being sarcastic
lol
Losmuertos: If mine was rant, yours were barks!
Almost 13 Years and they still need "much work" If that isn't a lost cause I don't know what is.
Agree, pull the pill and leave this wagon behind. It has four flats.
The wheels fell off that wagon years ago.
Same old bull @!$%# different commander lol
Same game; different player. Difference? None! Body bag makers will be in business throughout that "need much more work to be done" mindset. A previous war with guys running around in baggy pants and sandals proved a disaster. The Ruskies learned the hard way, and just left, and we call them dumb.
Well, I guess we just can't save the world after all. I am shocked. I thought the people craved democracy.
If we are withdrawing and in a training mission why is the Marine Corps still there? Why have we not turned this mission over to the Army?
Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf really took the US Commanders and President Bush for a long ride. And he is back in the news moving back to the Homeland.
Destroy the Poppy Fields Generals.
Yep, obama has been the President for the last 4+ years and he is still riding.
I read somewhere about the goat fukkers had caves full of opie a few years ago and there was such a glut the were "encouraging" the locals not to plant because there was a glut and the prices were too low for them. True?
From Wikipedia "Musharraf dramatically fell from the presidency in 2008 after voluntarily resigning after facing threat of impeachment led by the elected opposition parties. Musharraf is currently in self-imposed exile in London,
He hasn't been in office since Obama was elected.
Yep, so what is obama's reasoning for being in A'stan 4+ years? What was the sum gain on his leadership? Oh I'm sorry the military leaders were to busy playing footsy with reporters and staff to worry about executing a war plan.
It is all about the money Voodkokk and how much industry can make. Called war profiteering. I hope I don't surprise you but many of the war profiteers are Republicans.
CIA chief was busy with women and his book and John Allen, Afghan NATO forces commander was busy battling with e-mails to women.
Bush was busy counting monies from oil lobbyists and Obama has been busy listening to Jewish and Sunni oil rich rulers!
Human rights people have been busy trying poor soliders: Did you shoot the Islamic militant while he had a gun, did he shoot first, or why did you shoot?
At home, for injured soldiers: you don't have this benefit, that facility and so on!
Maybe if we let the Pentagon instead of the State Department prosecute the war we could accomplish something. Anyone want to guess why there has been an all but complete media blackout of Afghanistan in the the last four years?
The last 13 years....
Yet another New US Commander.......................WTH!!! How many is that now?
This almost sounds like a Cleveland Brown's Head Coach article - lolz
Time to start a Petition at the Whitehouse to get General McChrystal back
Radical Islam is a world Wide problem.
What's being done by the Hundreds of countries around the World that host them?
Why hasn't the Dope fields in Afghanistan been poisoned that are as much a threat?
Guns and Bullet are not the answer.
Marginal but most important geographies like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, north Africa, for the integrated globe; some things needed to be done to include these geographies in the integrated globe.
As the global leader in international affairs for this end, USA took the leadership and contributed a costly effort with the participation of her NATO allies.
It is pleasing to know that the mission has been completed to a level where the countries themselves can carry the mission with some training assistance from allied forces.
It seems a lot remains to be done after a hard earned mission. Every effort should be made to sustain the out come of the costly achievement.
If the presence of the leader the US is eminent, immunity problem should not be a cause of disruption of the achieved mission
With "friends" like Karzi, who needs enemies?!
and criminal Gen Mush!
Let's bring all the troops home. NO more war's to be fighting. We need a strong, a very strong defensive military, but we don't need to the the world's cops. About time people start realizing it.
..
Take a look at the generals faces and then take a look at the afgneys face.....Ever wounder why these people are still in the stone age?
Fail. Criminal waste of lives but great profits for US war industries and expansion of the CIA's drones- which was the whole point besides permanent occupation of the big base at Bagram City.
"What's not changed is the growing capability of our Afghan partners, the Afghan national security forces."
I agree. The Afghan forces have gotten plenty of practice shooting Americans.
Whether we leave now or in a year Afghanistan will still be a sewage dump. Farmers will continue to grow poppies and warlords will use the money to fight for power. What we don't need to be doing and that the U.S. has done over the last 6 months is send National Guard units that are experts in farming. the Afghans know how to farm but there is more money in poppies than wheat or corn.
A gradual draw-down is as dumb an idea as a gradual surge. Get the troops out now!
I often comment to my friends and family how disgusted I am at the poor reporting(or complete lack there of) on the war in Afghanistan...I am a news hound, I read many websites and flip through all the news channels daily...and I never see anything from over there...sure, you'll see every few months a report ABOUT there, talking bout what we've supposedly accomplished and discussing when our troops might leave....but in my opinion the lack of reporting from there is deplorable...from what I've been able to see, Americans got better televison reporting from vietnam 40 years ago then we get today in the age of satellites cable tv yadayada...we have 66 thousand tropps over there...are some fighting as I type this? Sure do get a lot of news about how hip hop stars drive and who college football stars talk to on their phones though...now...is it the case that after 10 years of occupying the country its still too dangerous for reporters to cover the war there? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN AFGHANISTAN?????? TELL US!!!!!!! no one gives a @!$%# about the Kardashians family infighting ffs!!!!!
Pakistan is on the verge of bloody civil war.
It is difficult to guess, which Islamic group will get the nukes.
Then one can imagine their tartgets. For them, US is enemy No. 1. So it is necessary to eliminate the Paki nukes by carpet bombing the nuke areas.
When Islamists don't care about innocents being killed, why should we care?
The Islamic extremist Frankenstein monsters have started backstabbing big time the inventers of Pakistan, British, and the masters (US and allies) who kept them alive.
In most of the Islamic terrorism and plots in the US, Britain, Europe and other places, Pakis have a hand.
Half of NATO forces deaths in Afghanistan are due to Pakis.
Before followers of Islamic cult set their feet on Afghan and Paki regions, these regions were quite peaceful and prosperous.
Once the cancer of Islam gradually got control of the region, those regions have become raping, stealing, looting and killing fields.
In Afghanistan, Paki proxies Taliban did not even tolerate Buddha’s statue in Bamiyan.
Many Paki areas and some Afghan areas have become breeding and exporting centers for illegal activities including drugs growing and trading and export of Islamic radicals and terrorists all over the world.
British invented Pakistan in 47 and Pakistan is supposed to be a pure Islamic nation. In Pakistan, it was massive genocides of minorities in between 48-50.
Percentages of Hindus and Sikhs were reduced from about 24 percent less than three years by rapes, stealing, lootings, terrorizing and killing on a massive scale.
Paki Islamic religious madness did not end there.
Sunni Pakis are after Ahmedias, Sufis (fake love and dance Islamic soap opera people), Shiites (20 percent), Hazaras, and Baloochs and other minority sects/tribes.
Shiites, Sufis, Ahmedias and other minority sects/tribes people are blown up while they pray in their mosques on Fridays. And even hospitals are bombed to kill those injured.
Also put a ring around "Paki and Afghan" areas.
Declare Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, fountainheads of Islamic extremism and the resultant rampage all over the world as terrorist nations.
By changing the requirements for immigration, keep Pakis, Saudis, Somalis and other basket case Muslim nations' citizens out!