As pressure to end the war builds in Washington, supporters of the war in Afghanistan will invariably return to their strongest argument: the threat of Al-Qa'eda. However, a reasonable understanding of the terrorist organization shows that even Al-Qa'eda is not enough to justify a bloody and expensive occupation.
A new RAND report recommends a US-Pakistan nuclear deal, modeled after a similar agreement with India, as part of the US counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan. And that's just crazy.
The real endgame Karzai is working toward is that of a nominal, Pashtun-nationalist government in Kabul overlaying a Taliban-dominated countryside. Together they function not only as a crime family capable of exploiting Afghanistan's resources but also as a highly effective proxy for Pakistan's interminable battle against Indian influence.
Senate Republicans criticized President Obama's decision to begin withdrawing from Afghanistan in July 2011, claiming it sends the wrong message to our allies. But is this really accurate?
As the US campaign in Helmand and Kandahar, blame has increasingly shifted toward allies like NATO, Karzai, and Pakistan. The US wants them to "do more." But they are doing more. The problem is not our allies, but the war itself.