I admit to glossing over the proposal, but what does it mean to “Win in Afghanistan”?
From article ......following quote from Dec 2009 pre-surge.
Our overarching goal remains the same: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and to prevent its capacity to threaten America and our allies in the future. To meet that goal, we will pursue the following objectives within Afghanistan. We must deny al Qaeda a safe haven. We must reverse the Taliban’s momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the government. And we must strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan’s security forces and government so that they can take lead responsibility for Afghanistan’s future.
These were the right objectives, but the Obama administration did not stick with the surge long enough to bring them about....... (also from article)
This is absolutely the central question since multiple empires have crashed and burned when attempting to "win in Afghanistan." We need to learn from that history and be wiser in the choice of foreign policy we apply there. I would be in favor of a well-placed intelligence apparatus that can determine when a critical mass of bad actors is attempting to bring plans in to action. Then let the drones fly to scatter them to the four winds of the desert. Apply regularly and vigorously.
what does it mean to “Win in Afghanistan”?
My question exactly. What does “winning” in Afghanistan look like?
Take off and nuke the place from orbit.
It’s the only way to be sure.