FORGET OBAMA’S PLANNED WITHDRAWAL, U.S. TROOPS WILL HAVE TO STAY IN AFGHANISTAN FOR YEARS SAYS TOP MARINE COMMANDER
Mail Online
August 25, 2010
Afghanistan will not be secure enough for American forces to leave for a number of years, a top U.S. Marines commander has claimed.
The assessment of the war's progress by Commandant General James Conway will make bleak reading for Barack Obama, who planned a withdrawal due to start in July next year.
Conway also said intelligence intercepts suggest that Taliban fighters have been encouraged by the talk of the United States' beginning to withdraw troops next year.
'In some ways, we think right now it's probably giving our enemy sustenance,' Conway said of the 2011 deadline.
'We think that he may be saying to himself . . . "Hey, you know, we only have to hold out for so long."'
Conway, known for his candid speech, is planning to retire in autumn after 40 years in the Marines.
Speaking at the Pentagon, he said: 'Though I certainly believe some American unit somewhere in Afghanistan will turn over responsibilities to Afghan security forces in 2011, I do not think they will be Marines.'
Noting that Helmand and Kandahar are considered the 'birthplace' of the Taliban, Conway said, 'I honestly think it will be a few years before conditions on the ground are such that turnover will be possible for us.'
No comments:
Post a Comment