The Pathetic Afghan Army & Will Obama Fumble Iraq? (Michael Yon)

Michael Yon Online ^ | 3-11-09 | Michael Yon

[STARWISE]

The disconnect between reporting and reality on Iraq was dramatic during 2005. Media stories about the incompetence and hopelessness of the Iraqi army and police were like the soup of the day, every day.

Yet month by month, before my eyes, Iraqi security forces were improving.

Reporting this truth earned the label of “stooge,” because the soup of the day was Failure. Millions of Americans and Europeans apparently wanted Iraqis to suffer because those same Americans and Europeans seemed to hate George Bush.

Today Iraq is succeeding, but as Generals Petraeus or Odierno might say, the situation remains fragile and reversible.

Whereas the Bush-war ended in a new if messy democracy, this year we could see an Obama-war begin; the new President has sent a clear signal that we intend to mostly abandon Iraq during this crucial transition period.

Today, the progress is obvious. But if Iraq descends back into chaos, the Obama-war, a newborn war, will not be a result of U.S. aggression, but of limp leadership intent on fulfilling campaign promises that were misinformed to begin with.

Back in 2003, it was understandable that many people would detest what they believed was an illegal war – despite that Hussein refused to abide by U.N. resolutions – but it was telling to see that many people apparently wished cruelty upon the Iraqis out of malice for the United States or George Bush.

Those wishes were coming from cold, cruel hearts, pretending to care.

Among these people were the cruel souls who would later stand outside military hospitals, mocking young men and women who had suffered amputations and other grievous injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Today there remain people who wish to precipitously disjoin from the growing success in Iraq, and who apparently ultimately wish to see Iraq fail out of sheer malice not toward Iraq, but toward certain politicians and governments.

If President Obama fumbles the evacuation of combat forces, they may get their wish.

But while millions of people wished to see Iraq fail, courageous Iraqi volunteers lined up to join the army and police.

They were frequently blown to pieces while they waited. Nevertheless, the Iraqi army and police grew like bamboo. Every day the body counts rose, satisfying the pernicious souls parading as peace lovers who seemed to relish the mounting losses.

I once reported that apparently more people had been killed on an annual basis under the wars and genocides of Saddam Hussein, than were dying in the current war.

This observation was made without narration or opinion, but it unleashed a special venom that strikes only at the ankles of inconvenient truths. Should we have expected otherwise, after our government had behaved so arrogantly and deceptively?

Today the Iraqi army and police are on their feet and the government and economy are improving, though still in need of years of assistance, and at this time of mounting success, we are leaving.

The enemies seem to be biding their time.

Going into Iraq was a decision made by many. Pulling out so quickly is a decision made by one man.

Yet the Afghanistan situation was nearly opposite. Most westerners seem to want to see Afghanistan succeed, and they veritably chant about poverty and women’s rights, though few people actually are willing to put themselves in harm’s way to achieve dreamy visions.

Whatever the case, the public and the media gave a free pass to dozens of nations in Afghanistan, and today about 40 nations are directly involved.

Some of the military bases look like a carnival of uniforms, and the soldiers behave under a carnival of rules. By the time you add in all the contractors, aid workers, “friendly” spies and deadly enemies, it’s likely that people from a hundred countries are inside Afghanistan at this moment. Despite the broad representation, until recently we called it “The Forgotten War.”

Today we have an American President and Secretary of Defense who have essentially kicked, prodded and begged our allies to get more serious about Afghanistan, but mostly to no avail.

And so 17,000 more American troops are kissing their loved ones goodbye, many of them for the last time in their lives, and heading into Afghanistan.

Per capita combat deaths probably will be higher in Afghanistan this year than for any year in Iraq. The situation is very serious for the relatively few soldiers fighting there. Some are in combat every day and night.

The AfPak war began more than seven years ago. It is fair to ask why are we sending more U.S. troops today. After all, we’ve had plenty of time to build an army and police.

If drive-by journalists listen to some of the commanders on the ground, they might come back with reports that all is okay, and that the Afghan army is coming along nicely, and that certain writers are exaggerating.

I’ve had those same briefings from commanders. Just as in 2004 Iraq, I believe that Americans and Europeans have been deceived by their governments.

I’ve asked many key officers why we are not using our Special Forces (specifically Green Berets) in a more robust fashion to train Afghan forces. The stock answers coming from the Green Beret world – from ranking officers anyway – is that they are taking a serious role in training Afghan forces. But the words are inconsistent with my observations.

The reality is that the Green Berets – the only outfit in the U.S. military who are so excellently suited to put the Afghan army into hyperdrive – are mostly operating with small groups of Afghans doing what appears to be Colorado mule deer hunts in the mountains of Afghanistan. Special Forces A-teams are particularly well suited to train large numbers of people, but are not doing so.

Command will dispute my words, and privately have been doing so. But they cannot point to a map of Afghanistan and show where they are training significant numbers of Afghans. This information would not be secret or even confidential. Our troops who are partnered up with Afghans are often not the right choice for that particular job.

Nevertheless, some officers are already privately disputing my claims about the Afghan Army, and so I present these words from the British government:

~~~

Rest at link.

[STARWISE]

Michael Yon has never stopped telling the stories of our brave troops and what they face.

[STARWISE]

~~PING~~

[Lurker]

If anyone in America deserves a Pulitzer, it’s Yon.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[LS]

Not good. This guy has been dead on about Iraq from 2006 on. For him to say Afghanistan is unraveling because we aren’t training the troops is bad.

[50cal Smokepole]

BTTT

[neverdem]

thanks, bfl

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks neverdem.

Can We Defeat the Taliban?
We must understand why our foes in Afghanistan are so formidable
[because they’re funded by the same groups which funded Obama?]
National Review Online | March 12, 2009 | David Kilcullen
Posted on 03/12/2009 5:49:54 AM PDT by Sergeant Tim
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2204956/posts

[givemELL]

A recent piece on training Iraqi troops to simply remember their weapon serial number and write their name and rank, because they are illiterate, casts doubt on all such ‘training success’ in Iraq or Afganistan. Just beyond bronze age tribal people with a 1400 year old updated ‘Moon God’ are not good candidates for ‘modernity’ or new, non-tribal political ideas. It seems to be additionally worse in Afganistan simply due to the size of the country and its geography, as history says it has always been. All the mineral riches rumored to be in Afganistan are there because no one has even built a road to get them out. NATO cannot build and maintain and hold a road for supply purposes now. It barely holds Kabul.

Rethink...reminds one of a visionary holding onto his valise of gold, diamonds, rare earths, oil and gas bonds, locked to his wrist...as the ship sinks. Russians had the same vision. The West, NATO, and the US in particular, will have to pay what might be considered an infinite price for holding on to Afganistan. No one has ever done it who has tried it. Obama is not even an Alexander. Can we borrow enough money to maintain the effort? Our credit, world-wide seems to have run out. Our Muslim enemies repeatedly point this out. As many state with increasing frequency, “the issue is in doubt”.

[LS]

Just heard from a spc ops person inside Afghanistan. He has been there for years. That's not his assessment at all. He claims we've made remarkable progress, compressing many years' worth of improvements into eight, and that the same process is taking place on the ground that occurred in Iraq vis a vis a "winnowing out" of bad guys.

Yon is good, but he hasn't been in Afghan long, having spent most of the last six or so years in Iraq. There is concern on my guy's part as to the will of the admin. So far, Zero has been so preoccupied with meaningless crap that he has basically ignored the battlefield.