Trump is doing what Nixon did in South Vietnam. He is pretending that the USA will have an agreement that the enemy , in this case the Taliban , would/will live up to Zalmay Khalilzad`s pipedream. North Vietnam invaded the South as soon as the American troops went home. There was no "Peace With Honor" that Nixon sold to a war weary US public.
America should declare failure and leave Afghanistan. Maybe give a few chants OF U-S-A , U-S-A on the way out the door.
I sincerely doubt the talks were canceled for the reasons this deep fake president cited, too. More than likely, Trump blundered this "deal" just as he has done with so many before this. Sadly, for the Afghan citizens, they will be the ones to pay for nothing more than hoping American politicians would do what they had promised in the beginning of this war- eliminate the Taliban from their country.
The travel Agent quoted in the article as saying: “There is no point in trying for peace when the Taliban does such terrible things to innocent people”, must be living in Cloud Cucooko Land. The reporter should have asked him to explain American bombing on Wedding Parties, etc. Perhaps he thinks American Bombs and sharp shooters kill only SINNERS, and not Innocent people. And perhaps he deems that 2 million Afghans Refugees in Pakistan and another 2 million in Iran are sinners, and this why God has banished from Afghan soil.
Trump hastily drew a Sharpie line in the sand to include the unfortunate death of Sargent Ortiz.
1
Very similar to the US “peace” deal in Vietnam. Claim victory, and leave those Afghans who have trusted and supported us to their fate. Unfortunately, the Taliban have nowhere else to go.
2
Trump finally realized that being the deal-maker at a deal bound for failure was going to backfire. And so he withdrew.
One can understand the reluctance of ordinary Afghans to give any legitimate power to the Taliban. However, were a deal to be made that included American withdrawal, the entire country would be controlled by the Taliban in a matter of months.
This is very sad for the Afghans, but their country cannot be fixed.
Mr. Trump did not want to be the poster boy for a doomed deal.
1
I watched Trump talk about the cancelled negotiation and I heard him say that it was a terrorist attack after the "peace agreement" had been reached "in principal" and was days from possibly being finalized that convinced him the Taliban could not be trusted. He added that one of those killed in the attack was an American soldier. So how is every Afghan in the story convinced it was the American's death that killed the effort to bring peace through negotiation to their country. It would seem they were told that by those interviewing them. That's a shame as that mistaken belief will make it more difficult to work trustfully with the Afghans as we plow into year 19 of this quagmire, now with no end in sight.
@THOMAS WILLIAMS I'm not sure they were convinced but it sounds like they were told what the president said the reason why he pulled us out of the agreement. It does seem strange that one bombing attack just before the meeting would derail the negotiations when there have been 2-3 Taliban bombings per month in the 10 months the negotiations were happening. Mentioning the American death was probably not a good move in his statement.
1
Don't blame the U.S. Administration for lack of progress in Afghanistan. As quoted in the last line of the article "As long as there is an Afghanistan, there will always be fighting and death".
It's a fantasy to believe there will ever be a peace agreement with the Taliban allowing freedom and democracy, and women's rights. Acknowledgement of that fantasy has been long overdue. Too many Americans have lost their lives being sacrificed for a fantasy.
6
‘“As long as there is an Afghanistan, there will always be fighting and death,” he said. “It’s all I’ve known all my life.”’
How sad it is that the lives of these poor young men have been so miserable. And worse that we have an administration that has no real strategy let alone credibility to resolve the situation.
8
Why are journalists and Congress not going after Khalilzad? It would appear that he has betrayed his adopted country and his country of birth by coming up with such a foul " agreement in principle" which would essentially be a repetition of the Vietnam debacle leaving the Afghans to the mercy of the blood letting Taliban.
If there is to be a solution it must involve the regional powers (China, India, Iran, Pakistan and Russia ) , the USA and the Afghan factions. It cannot be left to one duplicitous diplomat who was probably more interested n a Nobel Prize than in the welfare and security of the Aghan people.
2
What is it like to have an executive that lies all the time to the extent that you actually take no notice of what it says.
"Thousands of Taliban killed in the last few days ". Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe just made up.
10
At first I thought Trump's inviting the Taliban to the U.S. for talks was just another one of his lies - until the Taliban said indeed they'd been invited. Sad!
6
They should have been arrested as soon as they touched down in this had gone forward.
3
It is Pakistan which holds the key for a peaceful and free Afghanistan. For it was Pakistan, which was used by President Carter and his NS Advisor Brezhinsky, to form and cogulate the baser group --Talibans. Unfortunately, we must now go to the root if we want to uproot the poisonous tree of Taliban and Islamic Totalitarianism, and this root is so much in plain sight --Pakistan. President Bush gave Musharef--the then Military Dictator running Pakistan--a whole 30 days to take these Islamic Thugs from Afghanistan, the Nothern Afghanistan in particular, before he went after the Al Quida. These 30 thousands from Pakistan are the core of the Afghani Talibans causing all the death and destruction. Hope, President Trump will be bold enough on his own to go after the real culprit --Pakistan--of all these deaths and destructions.
7
On Saturday evening President Trump cancelled his secret meeting at Camp David with Taliban and Afghan leaders, citing the death of Sargent Ortiz as the reason for his decision to call off peace talks with the Taliban.
Late Saturday Secretary of State Mike Pompeo took the Marine One helicopter to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to pay tribute to Sargent Ortiz as his casket, draped in an American flag, was unloaded from the plane.
Trump did not have the common decency to honor this selfless patriot by being there himself taking just an hour or two out of his busy tweeting schedule. It is a short helicopter ride to the airforce base on Marine One, a trip President Obama took on many occasions to honor the fallen often without anyone even knowing except the awaiting family members.
On Saturday Trump used the death of Sargent Ortiz as a self serving political pawn in his cancellation of the meeting at Camp David. He is truly a despicable human being devoid of any scintilla of compassion and does not deserve the title of Commander in Chief.
Thank you Sargent Ortiz for your ultimate sacrifice to our country.
25
Obviously, the Taliban is an extreme radical terrorist organization. There are not partial agreements for the sake of their ideology. The progressive Afghan people understand that!
It will be sending Afghanistan back to the middle ages!
Not only that it will put pressure to neighboring Pakistan controlling extreme radical organizations …
5
Anyone going to challenge Pompeo about his 1000 killed Taliban in 10 day claim? I keep seeing this quote showing up since his interview. I want to see them all eliminated too but given their estimated 40000 to 75000 number, seems hard to believe in 10 days so many were killed. The war would have been over a long time ago.
6
@APM
Trump says the meeting was cancelled because of one American death and the Taliban should have restrained themselves during the peace talks but Pompeo said yesterday on the ABC Sunday News that " they killed more than1000 Taliban in last10 days" Google it.
Who was restraining the US ?
If world history is a guide, the Afghani people will sooner or later have a full blown civil war that will decide what their country will be. Meanwhile, it's astonishing that more American people aren't outraged we have a president with such poor judgement as to invite the Taliban on American soil. Just think about that. We have a president who would allow the Taliban to see the layout of one of the country's most secure facilities -- Camp David - and during 9/11 week. Yet, congressional democrats are having trouble deciding if they want to impeach Trump.
11
trump would kill for a Nobel Peace Prize.
17
@Jerry He would give the Taliban a tour of the White House if he thought it would work. And to prove that point I use the fact that he was about to give them a tour of Camp David.
1
Don’t know about Americans, I am in Canada, but there is not a single person I know who believes a word your President utters. I don’t think that this is a phenomena limited to me and my friends.
51
Eventually, I knew that Afghan officials and the Taliban would weigh in with explanations that contradicted Trump, and that I would believe them over the president of the United States. Ain't that somethin?
19
The Taliban is a terrorist organization, designated as such by this administration. Donald Trump and Mike Pence are treasonous for having conspired with this terrorist group, and for operating against sovereign states (the US, Afghanistan et al) without Congress' consent or knowledge.
Impeach Trump and Pence.
11
People half a world away, in a country war-torn by competing forces centuries before the Taliban forced the Soviets to give up, can clearly see Trump as the lying, self-centered imposter he is. How fuzzy must be the optics of Trump supporters right here at home who still support him?
21
Special Envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad said last week that a peace agreement had been reached “in principle,” pending approval by Mr. Trump.
Enjoying your work Mr. Khalizad?
10
I am so tired of being embarrassed every single day by this joke of a human being. He is not worthy to be the grime on the bottom of my shoe let alone be the face of this country. I fear for us all every day, but fear more that we are numb to what he has done and continues to do.
32
They can make effective peace talks on the condition that both sides stop military or violent attacks. It is impossible for both sides to continue talks when atrocious attacks have been carrying out. But the US has the responsibility to bring peace to Afghanistan again because the US started the war. The US cannot withdraw from Afghanistan until people become to live peacefully in their country.
1
I could be the only naive person here; however, I believe that Trump’s intentions were good! He did want to bring peace to the region.
After Trump saw that even after Taliban was treated as equal, invited to Whitehouse (!) forgiven, so to speak prior issues for the sake of future peace, Taliban still resorted to violence. This was Taliban’s greatest opportunity missed.
Pretty sad.
That’s it.
5
Sad that you and millions of Americans like you still believe Trump things about anything but his own ego.
8
I would bet that the majority of the women in Afghanistan would never want the Taliban to return. I think we are wrong not to want to share at least some of our Western values as well as our capitalist system with other countries. Besides religious tolerance, a value that may be a bit eroded in the USA these days, the shared values should include an understanding that women are people with rights, those at a minimum being the ability to walk safely out of their homes without a male escort and to freely go to a doctor or a store or a school.
Given how not only women were treated, but how they treated so many people the last time the Taliban was in power, it is hard to understand the desire to make a peace treaty with them, thereby allowing them to thrive and strengthen their culture and its hold on others. Obviously, the current leadership of Afghanistan wasn't thrilled with the idea, which is probably why the negotiations were kept so secret.
While I hate the thought of one more young person wounded or killed, it bothers me immensely that we sent them there in the first place, if we are just going to hand the country back to the same rigid religious sect that held it previously.
5
Can we please just leave this horrid place? We have no interests there. What do we get from them, heroin poppies? This entire country is not worth the life of even one more American kid.
Let them fight it out to the death. It's none of our business. Let us only resolve to have good relations with whomever comes out on top.
3
@MIKEinNYC What about the responsibility we have for breaking/attacking it in the first place? How about the responsibility for making OBL what he was in the first place when he fought the soviets?
7
Someone must have told Trump he might get a Nobel Peace prize...
4
Trump didn't get a Nobel Peace Prize for North Korea. He won't be getting one for Afghanistan. What country will he pick next?
7
This reminds me of the Vietnam war, a never ending war where it appears to people who oppose the Taliban do not have enough support to win a war against them. As bad as the Taliban are, perhaps America should leave and let the Afgan people sort themselves out.
4
I could be the only naive person here; however, I believe that Trumps intentions were good. E did want to bring peace to the region. After Trump saw that even after Taliban was treated as equal, invited to Whitehouse (!) forgiven so to speak prior issues for the sake of future peace, Taliban still resorted to violence. That was one bad move on behalf on Taliban. This was their greatest opportunity missed.
Pretty sad.
That’s it.
2
The death of an American soldier gave Trump a convenient reason to cancel talks that were hastily arranged, drawing outrage about Taliban coming to US, likely to produce results that would be short-lived. Like whatever actions he takes, his rationale was dishonest.
11
Almost everyone knows ending the talks had nothing to do with the death of one soldier and everything to do with Trump's massive ego.
Either he was going to be the centerpiece with all of the attention focused on him or he was going to strut off in a fit. I can just see him lobbying for a Nobel Prize.
The irony is, had he just kept quiet and allowed things to proceed, this could have been the crowning achievement of any of the past several administrations. But he just can't stay out of his own way. Sad.
6
If Afghans fear the return of rule by the Taliban then why are they so ineffective in their fight against the Taliban. I suspect they rely too much on the US to do the dying.
3
David Zucchino has narrated accurately that people in Afghanistan&the Taliban know that the agreement is really a fraud.The Taliban has decided to agree whatever the USA wants,with sole intention of getting 140000 American soldiers out of Afghanistan.As if they were serious,the Taliban protracted the talks to give it gravitas.Taliban knows once US soldiers leave,they will never come back,Taliban could enter Kabul in a victorious parade.
“Many a slip between the cup&lip”proved true.Taliban were ready to go to USA&behave well&fool Trump.No doubt,it was Secretary Pompeo&Bolton,who protested that agreement with Taliban at Camp David will haunt Trump. So out went the Taliban.
In the near future,the ageing Taliban leaders will be out of Afghanistan.The Taliban may step up violence.But that will make the US more resolute to stay in Afghanistan,
A smart tactic for Taliban would be to reduce war to low levels to tire the Americans.But I doubt they are so wise.Yes,Taliban are cunning enough to know that they should do anything US wants& get them out.
There was a conspiracy between some nations supporting Taliban to go for diplomacy to get Americans out.Many meetings were held for 2 years to give the talks weight&as if the Taliban were serious.Now that fig leaf has been blown away.
Shakespeare said:“All is well that ends well”.There is complete relief in Afghanistan.Now the Taliban have to drink the”chalice of poison” &explain how they were fooled by he Americans&kicked out too!Funny!
1
Never; ever trust Trump
7
That’s because they don’t value life. Only a clown would negotiate with the Taliban. We need to leave as fast as we can, no need for negotiations
3
The fierce mountain warriors of Afghanistan have been frustrating invaders and occupiers for millennia.
From the Macedonian through the British and Russian and Soviet and American Empires all have come to grief. Donald Trump is a pimple next to the likes of Alexander the Great, Queen Victoria and Mikhail Gorbachev.
They don't call Afghanistan ' the graveyard of enpires' for nothing.
While the ethnic Pasthun are a plurality in Afghanistan, most Pashtun live in Pakistan where they are only 15% of Pakistanis. And although the Taliban is all Pashtun not all Pashtun are Taliban.
' You have the watches. We have the time' Taliban commander to his American counterpart
5
@Blackmamba
Wrong, the Macedonian under Alexander conquered
Afghanistan and so did the Mongols. In fact Alexander founded many cities still in existence in Afghanistan and some Afghans revere his memory.
4
@scythians
Alexander conquered the Persian Empire in six months.
He spent three years in Afghanistan.
Alexander 'conquered' Afghanistan the same way the Soviet Union and America have.
2
News reports say that an agreement "in principle" has already been signed by the Taliban and the trump administration. Could it be that donald trump intended to hold a big signing ceremony on 9/11? 9/11 would then be known as the date Osama Bin Laden made war on the United States and the date that donald trump made peace in Afghanistan. Sadly for djt, it appears that it was a bad deal, and trump pulled out at the last minute, apparently afraid that he would be known as the president who sold Afghanistan to the Taliban.
2
”As long as there is an Afghanistan, there will always be fighting and death,” he said. “It’s all I’ve known all my life.”
Are we deluded?
It is time to completely withdraw from this medieval, corrupt, and God forsaken country. No more American effort and resources should be wasted; no more blood from young Americans should be spilled there.
3
@Michael Richter
But ( a giant but)
Being a steady and clam and consider all options and decide very wisely wasn't an option following 9/11.
Where did we catch 9/11 master minds, Pakistan, Philippines, etc.
As far as I am concerned none including Hillary Clinton came out and said a sensible thing about how to go after terrorists.
Cheney's entire agenda was creating fanfare attack and covering his footprints.
Don't blame Afghanistan and their people, they were poor and maybe less literate but until Russian's and then USA invaded their country. Afghans were trying to live any other people.
Russian's send their murderous red army, American's send their murderous CIA trained Mujaheddin paid by Saudi Arabia.
Innocent millions of Afghans paid the price with their life and their country's future
4
“As long as there is an Afghanistan, there will always be fighting and death,” he said. “It’s all I’ve known all my life.”
What a tragic statement. I wish I understood Afghanistan, I wish I understood why people feel a need to kill each other. I really don't. Isn't life short enough and hard enough as it is? Can we teach peace? How?
4
@Laurence Hauben when you have wealth, recourse even to a flawed system of law, a roof and healthcare. Yes. But when survival is a daily struggle there WILL be fighting. It is only a matter of SCALE; they kill individuals who have wronged them, we kill for getting more oil, or another EV, or the latest electronics. They are humans. We are greedy creatures.
3
@Tamza Humans are born with both selfish and altruistic impulses. Love Thy Neighbor can be taught. The Golden Rule can be taught. Violence is also taught. Certainly, ours is a violent country, all we need to do is look at the number of gun deaths in the US to see that. It doesn't mean that the status quo cannot change. I for one refuse to just shrug it off. We have a duty to try. Be kind, be helpful, even in small ways. Every gesture matters.
5
@Laurence Hauben Thank you.
1
Trump said the peace talks are dead. Haven’t any of you learned that this has to be a lie. Why report what he says.
Unless you print in the next sentence that this statement could be one more of his several thousand lies.
6
There are three parties needed to resolve the conflict in Afghanistan: The Taliban, the Afghan government and Trump.
The Taliban really doesn’t want peace, the Afghan government has proven corrupt throughout the entire conflict, siphoning off NATO and USA military funds in the billions to line their pockets, and then we add the imbecile Trump, who has no logical idea what he is doing in any matter.
It’s far better to bring our troops home, as wars in Afghanistan never end in peace.
3
@RJH And the headline here is WRONG. Maybe SOME Afghans not even MOST afghans.
1
Trump once told a reporter that the press and the polls should be responsible for the vetting of his appointments. Obviously this time public opinion swayed his position on the Taliban talks. True to form Trump had to come up with his own reason for pulling out. He cares nothing about the Afghans or the soldiers and civilians on all sides. It's all about the buffoon in the suit. Get him a t-shirt and an old pair of Levis and escort him off the White House grounds.
4
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/07/trump-canceled-meeting-taliban-afghanistan-president-1484484
This article at politico.com describes how Trump's ignorance and erratic behavior messed up the Afghan negotiations. His so called advisors are equally inept. These guys are dangerously incompetent.
5
Dear Afghanistan,
The word "doubt" concerning Trump's explanation is far too kind.
Many of us would state it is just another blatant lie stated by a learned weather forecaster, in which he lied on that map also.
So, I would be very wary trusting Trump with anything including the laundry money.
15
It is a shame that anyone would even entertain the idea of negotiating with a terrorist organization like the Taliban.
Why legitimize the use of terror, where innocents pay with their lives, as a means to establish a 6th century islamic caliphate?
If these talks were to conclude with theTaliban gaining anything, would it not become a template for every disgruntled group to follow the same template ?
Terror will not have its dividends! Period.
5
Can someone remind me WHAT Trump has actually accomplished since he occupied the White House?
Except for ruining the country in all possible respects?
PS: The stock market does not count, it is living off borrowed money. We will pay dearly for this with inflation. At some point the chicken always comes back to roost.
29
@Captain Nemo
Please. You missed the big one. Or should I say the bigly one?: The massive tax cut for the already filthy rich.
So far as the stock market. Of course it counts. Again, bigly. It counts for Trump and his cronies. He can and does manipulate the market to the tune of billions of dollars with a simple statement or tweet. That is raw power. Trump has it and he knows it.
By the time he is done, he may well be worth the 10 billion he lies about.
1
The issue is the timing of the attack, and its implications for any peace agreement to be entered into in good faith, and the ability of the Taliban negotiators to actually implement any peace agreed to.
Even Kim Jung Un had the common sense to not fire long range missiles on the eve of his initial meeting with Trump. The timing of this attack makes one wonder:
If you sign a peace with these negotiators, will they be able to cause the Taliban at the front lines to cease and desist? and second,
Would the negotiators even try to implement a peace in accord with any agreement signed?
Had Trump actually held the meeting, and signed a peace agreement immediately after such a Taliban attack, Trump's detractors would be saying that his signing the agreement amounted to a surrender to the Taliban, who have no intention of adopting peaceful ways. Would Roosevelt have signed a peace agreement with the Japanese the day after Pearl Harbor?
3
We must surrender to the Taliban. The challenge is how to disguise it as a peace agreement.
It is a bit of a blow to my self esteem to realize how weak a country we are, such losers. Remember Vietnam?
I remember way back in the 1950s when the Washington Senators were always in last place. They still are.
Vote like your life depends on it. It does.
2
@RM Ok, let's discuss what the detractors would say about Trump and his "surrender to the Taliban".
Many years ago another administration signed a document in Paris that ended one of our costliest wars.
That agreement, as the purported agreement possibly would do, threw a government and the people under the bus.
So, given that and the possibility the purported Trump agreement does the same, throughs the Afghani government and people under the bus, what is your opinion of the "Peace With Honor" agreement?
Was Nixon wrong then and Trump correct now?
One accomplished our fears, the other will accomplish the same.
@Dan
For too many years we have been trying to impose our values on people in other places who are stubbornly resistant to such change. Similarly, there are people, we consider to be terrorists, who seek to impose their values on our society.
We would all be better off to accept that other cultures are different than ours, and they should do the same. Poking at hornet nests is never a productive endeavor.
6
Par for teh course with the Trump Administration; when things start not going hsi way, he backs off. But, when he does, he leave even a bigger mess/issue, then when eh started. Trump has put, on his staff loyal to him (not the US), but have absolutely no clue on how to do anything.
Afghanistan is just another tragic chapter in the Trump playbook. The Afghan people have been used as paws for Trump's ego. In this case, Trump wanting out of Afghanistan was willing to throw the Afghan people under the bus. And, if the Taliban came to power, well, so be it with Trump.
Finally, if I were an Afghan, I would be counting the days until there is anew administration in the White House. Though give Bush, Obama and now Trump, don't expect to see the US, or Taliban, departing any time soon. US defense contractors love the status quo.
9
That sums it up. You expose the true explanation for a losing eighteen year war.
@Nick Metrowsky
"don't expect to see the US, or Taliban, departing any time soon."
In truth, sadly, the only way to ensure that the Taliban can't regain control is to grow a generation of Afghanis who appreciate and treasure the freedoms they enjoy under a democratic regime. ⅓ of the national assembly are women and ⅓ of school children are girls. However, only ⅓ of the school children are girls, which means that about 1/6 of school-age girls attend school. Many of those are likely in very traditional homes, which still don't recognize the value and potential of females. It will take another generation to change the traditional attitudes that welcome the Taliban. The US will have to stay in Afghanistan long enough so that democratic values will be so entrenched so as to make a Taliban takeover impossible.
I feel so bad for the innocent citizens of Afghanistan whom have been injured, harmed and terrorized by the Taliban.
But I am sadder still that any of them held hope that this administration, that this POTUS would care about their well-being.
8
We are the cause of Afghan suffering. It’s so obvious.
3
@denise,
I am sorry to hear you had hopes in POTUS showing care. POTUS does not understand such heart value. Thank you that you do.
1
@J’aime. No, I held no hopes that Trump held an emotion such as empathy but I feel bad that the people of Afghanistan thought he might.
Trump thought he could win a Nobel Peace Prize by scheduling a meeting and a photo/op. There was nothing more to it than that.
28
In 2001 there was good reason to invade Afghanistan, but never an exit strategy. Bush & Cheney had rosey visions of Democracy flourishing in Afghanistan and throughout the Middle East, which quickly went south.
So, where to from here? We can't blame Trump for the conflict, and now it appears he's in the unenviable position of choosing between perpetual war or just pulling the plug.
1
Obama failed to end it. He is the prime villain here. He had eight years. I knew that we had failed. Surely he did. But the difference is he is a corporatist and I am not.
Money is our god. Our country has a complex, many actually. Military, medical, prison, education and fossil fuel energy complexes. It’s all about the money.
We have plundered African American wealth for 400years. Now it’s the middle class whites that are added to the victim list and many voted for Trump and the Republicans. Who knew that national suicide could be so complicated?
Denny Crane
2
Trump must have believed getting his Nobel Peace Prize was as easy as winning his trade war.
13
It's quite simple why. Mighty US imperialism has been defeated in Afghanistan, just as it was in Iraq. However, like other defeats in Korea and Vietnam, the bully doesn't want to admit defeat in order not to seem weak before all the other thugs in the world, and no political administration wants the blame. So the defeated US drags the war on and on killing hundreds of thousands more Afghan people, as they killed millions of Koreans and Vietnamese long after it was clear the US could not win its objectives or the war. It is another example of the utter contempt for human life and suffering by the US ruling rich and their twin parties. No difference between Democrats and Republicans. Obama sent a massive 'surge' of tens of thousands of troops into Afghanistan, which was a total failure. Bush pushed the actual withdrawal of US troops from Iraq into the next administration so as to avoid looking worse. All US troops home is the only thing we should be demanding in the name of humanity.
3
@AR I see you are toting the old Soviet line. Defeating the the Taliban is not an act of Imperialism. Vietnam was tragic for my generation but we didn't lose and would have "won" if we went all in. As for Korea, you insult all those men who held the line and beat back the Commies. Had MacArthur had his way and bombed the bridge over the Yalu River, Korea would be one united nation and not Communist. Unfortunately, Truman stopped him.A big mistake.
1
@MCH Many historians will dispute your assumptions.
1
@MCH
You remind me of Kevin Kline in a-- Fish Called Wanda--"We DIDN'T lose in Vietnam--it was a Tie!".
Truman made a lot of mistakes as president, but he was far to slow to fire MacArthur.
Trump’s benchmark to negotiate peace deal with Taliban was to save American soldiers from further casualties in Afghanistan war. How could death of just one American soldier change the dynamics? Trump’s decision indicates that it is easier to start the war than begin the peace. Sadly, no way out of this quagmire! Future casualties of American soldiers are far from over!
4
The average Afghani must be despairing at this point because of the fickleness of American, oh what the heck, let’s call it “Foreign Policy”, though no actual policies seem to be involved. My heart goes out to the powerless citizens of this country whose fate, at least partially, is in the hands of a feckless, irresolute, intemperate charlatan. And we elected him. The writing was on the wall when we betrayed the Kurds. Why would any one trust us now?
9
There’s an easy way to chart el supremo’s course...What did Obama do? Okay, now do a 180 and proceed!
2
It appears these Afghans have a better grasp of logic and common sense than Trump's base. If the talks were going well, why would the Taliban authorize a bombing? And if the bombing were carried out by a rogue element, why take credit? The facts suggest the talks were going nowhere, and the bomb simply provided Trump with the opportunity to salvage his ego..make it look like he was the one walking away. But the fact the Taliban was willing to take credit for the bomb shows the Taliban had already walked away.
Like North Korea, Afghanistan is a tough foreign policy problem that has no easy answers. Yes, they are serious problems that have challenged experts for years. But as we have learned since 2016, the solution is not to bring in some con man who pretends he knows everything but in fact knows nothing.
16
Taliban is classic case of blind faith in the holy book.
Not Trump, not America, nor anyone else can help them unless they try start thinking critically and stop taking everything in their book so literally .
The only way out I see is better education and better critical critical thinking in schools.
3
@Anoop. “ Blind faith in the holy book” and lack of critical thinking perfectly describes Trump’s evangelical base.
10
It is us who are evil beyond description. We won’t let Bahamians into the country.
Pure evil... not Trump but the American people who allow it.
Somehow we must be made to disappear.
Global warming or nuclear war will effect this needed change.
So there is something to which to look forward.
1
Dear decent suffering Afghans: As an average American, I am sorry to tell you this has never been about you with our current administration. President Trump is running for election and wants it both ways: he could tell those who want the war ended that he was working to end it. Now he can tell those who fear a resurgent Taliban that a deal is off.
I am with the second group, but I cannot imagine what this must be like for you and for the families of US troops.
And I will gladly wear a burqua to protest any agreement that abandons Afghan women.
3
There he goes again, lying to the American people...
It makes absolutely no sense that this "single attack, and the death of one American, could really have upended the talks when the deaths of thousands of Afghans this year — not to mention at least 15 other American soldiers — had not."
This President only knows how to lie.
20
Trump is such a lying corrupt person, total dishonesty
10
The negotiations should have ended long ago. The Taliban has continued to murder Afghan civilians by the hundreds. They have no intention of stopping the carnage. They should be talking with the Afghan government instead of killing non-combatants, or is that their real purpose?
2
@David Delmonico
The Taliban has steadfastly refused to negotiate with an Afghan govt. they view as illegitimate and a puppet of the U.S., so the beat goes on.
1
I wonder why the news is saying Trump cancelled the meeting / invitation with the Taliban?... Isn’t it obvious to everyone that he lied about the whole thing... never invited them in the first place... made the whole thing up and then cancelled it.... Just like he said the Chinese suddenly called him in the middle of the G-7 to say you were right, lets restart the trade talks... it was just an outright lie from the start...
Why do you indulge Trump’s lies?
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Maybe Trump was sending a signal to the NorKs and Iranians.
Donald Trump’s lies are so blatant that goat farmers who don’t speak English can see through them.
Future historians will not be kind to the Republican Party.
12
Of course the Afghans " ...Doubt His Explanation".
He has told over 11,000 public lies while being President. No one should ever believe a word he says.
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@Joe Miksis
Good try, Donald.
But thanks to you, America is STILL talking about your Alabama Disaster.
3
The weariness in the Afghan voices is palatable.
How did the grand experiment in government for and by the people evolve into this mess of a fragile, petty wanna-be authoritarian?
Even if we can extricate from him in 2020, I am not sure the damage can be undone.
2
It's quaint, naive, and adorable that the Afghan leaders haven't, yet, figured out that every statement, every motive and every excuse Trump uses is a lie. Don't think twice about the death of an American soldier which, supposedly, scuttled this meeting. Donald Trump prefers his war heroes "not dead". Hopefully those Afghan government officials will catch up to the rest of the world at about the same time as Trump supporters here in the U.S.
2
Go Donald- winning the hearts and minds of the Afghan people with grace we can all be proud of.
Is there another man in the entire history of the United States who has brought our nation so much shame?
Nope. He will leave a stain that will take a generation to remove.
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Pompeo shares some blame for this fiasco (and the North Korea fiasco). You'd think, having been around a while, he'd have some idea of how delicate negotiations work. One can only assume he values his job over telling Trump not to do dumb things. Or maybe he's a true patriot and is hoping, given enough rope, Trump will hang himself. Nah.
11
Pompeo is as dispicable as the rest of the Swamp
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Didn't our military personnel report that they had to order soldiers to look the other way when they encountered Afghan war lords who had teenage boys chained to their personal bed frames? The sooner our involvement in this 18 year-old quagmire ends, the better.
3
Considering this guy is the worst negotiator in history, there is no chance that the stated reasons for these talks breaking down are true.
Either the Taliban walked away looking for more concessions, never agreed to come at all, or Trump was ready to give away the farm to secure a US withdrawal and someone pulled him back from what would have amounted to a US surrender on the week of Sept 11.
He got nothing in return for his "summits" with N. Korea. He got nothing in return for moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem. He will get nothing from this either.
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@Dean Black
Not exactly. He got precisely what he wanted with North Korea. A photo-op that will live in the history books forever. The first US President to set foot into NK.
He got what he wanted in moving the embassy. Checking a box that said campaign promise kept. And far more importantly---he was able to poke a stick in the eye of everyone who told him not to do it.
You have to understand Trump. It's all about HIM. Everything else is just details.
Any other US administration would have had more sense than to negotiate with the Taliban and exclude the Afghan government. They would also have been smart enough to keep everything under wraps until there was a done deal. Unfortunately the only thing our current president cares about is claiming victory (and blaming everyone else when the "peace" inevitably turns into a disaster).
Though of course Bush did something similar by declaring "Mission accomplished" after deposing the Taliban and promptly heading for Iraq. Leaving Afghanistan in a mess we've been unable to get out of.
10
@PJ. And anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of the history of the area could have predicted that. Is it our ignorance or our hubris that makes us think we would prevail?
3
They're correct - Trump is a liar, an idiot and a game show host. He's playing fast and loose for the photo ops and headlines without even realizing that his crimes are totally transparent. There was no meeting to cancel.
If Republicans had even an ounce of backbone (or morals or ethics or loyalty to this country instead of Putin and their pocketbooks), they would long ago have put an abrupt stop to Trump's and McConnel's treason. If I can clearly see it, they can too, but they are far from being honest brokers or patriotic Americans.
It doesn't matter what really stupid Tokyo Rose Hannity and Ingraham say - TRUMP AND HIS "ASSOCIATES" are truly traitors. No amount of propaganda and hyperbole will change that fact.
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Can you just imagine the apoplexy from the Republicans if President Obama invited the Taliban to Camp David?
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@Paul Ruszczyk I'm quite sure DJT is NOT a Muslim. Can't say as much for the other guy.
@Mike
I am sure President Obama is not a Russian agent. Trump is.
1
If, when you think of Afghan women, or children in cages on the American border, or even midwestern soybean farmers, you're ever tempted to think "I'm sure glad *my* family's life and future don't depend on Donald J. Trump's whims and tweets," think again. Ultimately, they do, too.
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The poor people of Afghanistan should realize that Trump is not interested in what is best for them or for our troops in fact. He just wants a photo op or headline that somehow gains him or at best fails to lose him additional votes in an election. He has no true foreign policy or long term planning/judgment skills. This is all about him, not real Afghan or American lives. Shame on this Sociopath.
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@BB He wants his Nixonian Peace with Honorable Mention to go with his upcoming Nixonian getting thrown out of Office.
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@Ron
At least 1970’s GOP leaders had the decency to tell Nixon it was time to go, and Nixon had the decency to resign. Decency, a word that will never be used in connection with the Trump administration and the McConnell-led Senate. For shame!
8
I beg to differ. He has great long term planning skills... being elected president. He’s planning on a hat trick.
I know that’s unconstitutional. So??
The whole world knows that Trump is very unpredictable but unpredictability is not a good negotiating tactic. I don't think the Talibans were surprised about Trump's behavior.
4
I think everyone in the world knows not to believe a single word Trump utters. It is a pitiful state of affairs, but it is the reality.
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@Mike
So, we NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS. We cannot just sit there and hope for the best - it won't happen that way. Trump is criminally insane and needs to be treated as such, as do all of his "good men".
8
my guess is the taliban never agreed to anything
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Let me see whether I have this right. We helped kill 1,000 Taliban in 10 days and then stop talking because they killed one of ours. Got it.
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@Lawrence Reichard
So said our glib Mr Pompeo, apparently unaware of the irony. And then there is the utterly sick irony of Trump who suddenly expressed outrage at the death of a Puerto Rican soldier after turning his back on the island after the hurricane. Of course, his interest stopped short of actually honoring the fallen soldier with his presence at Dover.
11
The Trump strategy of negotiations and peace talks have failed. The US needs an alternate strategy if it intends to get out.
I propose increasing pressure on the Taliban's main benefactor, Pakistan. This is what Presidents Karzai and Ghani proposed all along but what Bush, Obama, and now Trump, all resisted.
The Taliban would never have even come to power in 1996 without the help of Pakistan's spy agency - the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). And the logistics branch of the Pakistan Army had aided in Taliban offensives when it was seizing power. Chinese-made armoured vehicles were gifted as well - courtesy of Islamabad. Which genius at the Pentagon thought it would be a great idea to enlist this country as an ally in the "war on terror".
Someone once said insanity is doing the same thing twice and expecting a different result.
The US should arm the (secular) resistance in Balochistan where the Pakistan army is committing atrocities. This will strengthen its hand at the negotiating table. It must reorient itself decisively towards democracies in the region such as India. It should also put its ego side and work with Iran to ensure a separate corridor to Afghanistan - one which Pakistan can't keep threatening to block from time to time.
Pakistan's economy is weak, its debt is enormous, its currency AND reserves have plummeted. It got its 13th IMF bailout, and is struggling to match Indian military spending on the eastern border.
I believe force might just work.
5
@Jack
Pakistan is NUCLEAR, and they would not hesitate to use their weapons if threatened. We have certain agreements with them, and India, that are very sensitive. The use of force, especially force without strategy like Trump bullies, would end inn disaster.
We need people of competence and honesty in a very much weakened State Department and a REAL President that understands reality. Pompeo and Trump, with the aid of Miller and Bolton, will end this world if our military is not very firm about controlling them. I think that 2020 may be too late to evict Trump and would therefore encourage full Articles of Impeachment immediately with an ensuing deep dive into everything that they have done to undermine this country on behalf of Russia.
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@Jack - "The US should arm the (secular) resistance in Balochistan where the Pakistan army is committing atrocities. "
The United States should never again arm anyone, anywhere, for any reason. We always seem to bet on the losing side and just make things worse.
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@Jack
I appreciate and admire your extensive background information on Afghanistan.
I am dubious however, when I read phrases like "...it (Afghanistan) must reorient itself towards democracies in the region..."
Why ? The Afghanis are a tribal people who have lived the same way for eons.
While we in the west gnash our teeth at their lack of freedoms for women and people from the "wrong" tribes, does it not occur to you that this is how they live, what they know and will revert to sooner or later when the invaders have finally left??
The British Empire failed, the Ottman Empire failed, the Soviet Union failed.
It's not called the "graveyard of Empires" for nothing.
3
When black men were given the right to vote in the 1800s, via the 14th and 15th amendments, women of all colors were excluded from that agreement, the argument being giving black men and women the vote was a bridge too far and that the right to vote for women would be dealt with at a later date. It took around 50 years for women to receive the same rights. The point of this is that there is a well-worn path through global history of leaving women out of negotiations, when the reality is that women suffer more than any other group. Women in Afghanistan were excluded from the negotiations and so was any concern for their well-being. We have an admitted sexual predator for a president, so that shouldn’t surprise anyone. I wish the women of Afghanistan luck, but what they really need is to emigrate. They won’t be safe anymore in their homeland once the U.S. leaves.
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@Sarah
They are not safe now. It's a war zone. Bombings and killings occur daily. The Taliban correctly view the Kabul government as puppets of the US. It is senseless to try and impose our views on another nation. 18 years of death and mayhem have changed nothing.
Perhaps we can find a way to at least suspend the killing. Then begin the slow process of trying to negotiate better treatment for ALL of the Afghan people. But the first thing is to stop the killing.
How sad, and Trumpian, is the loss of faith by Afghans in the power of the U.S. to achieve peace by talking to the Taliban...while excluding Afghans from the conversation. Knowing that religious Taliban fanaticism, while denying any rights of women to have a say, if an initial agreement to stop hostilities were to be successful, the trampling of human rights by killing any and all who opposes their violence would go on. Before we offer to help a community, shouldn't we ask first what they want, and need, and then get them involved? It is ludicrous, and abusive, and shortsighted, by the U.S., to enter into conversations with the Taliban unilaterally, ignoring ordinary Afghans in the process.
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@manfred marcus
Right on! The Americans that have given their lives to protect this country are now being disgraced by a fake president who tells them how wonderful they are with his fake rhetoric while at the same time stealing funding from critical military projects to feed his narcissism. Their "honorable mission" has been perverted by a feckless sociopath who fakes engagement, lies about it and has ZERO military knowledge or strategic thought.
Trump does what HE wants for HIS political and personal motives - the recipients of his actions are irrelevant to him. People such as this have been hung and beheaded in less-civilized countries, and for good reason.
4
Right on
2
I believe the only reason trump is interested in these talks is that he believes he will be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. After all, Obama received one—
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@JC
Trump qualifies readily for the Piece of Work Prize.
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Poor Afghans have borne the brunt of history.
In the 1970s, Kabul was relatively liberal: women wore skirts and taught at universities. Of course, city's elite were only a microcosm of a country, which was still largely impoverished and badly in need of reform.
Sadly, after the Saur revolution, when communists seized power, the conservative rural populace rebelled against measures to emancipate women such as banning the face veil. These policies were too forward for some and fuelled the rise of mujahideens (which the CIA began arming in 1978). By 1979, the Soviets - already in the country in a support role and at Kabul's invitation - felt compelled to invade (without Afghan consent).
The liberal elite of Kabul protested defiantly. Those who had the means escaped. The Mujahideen attacked the Soviets almost immediately but lost the first Afghan-Soviet war. The ruling puppet regime was corrupt and tribal Afghan women were often abducted by Soviet special forces arriving in helicopters. Those released - often after weeks - would be disowned by their own families.
The Soviets repeated the mistake of the US in Vietnam against the local populace: they bombed civilian areas deemed sympathetic to mujahideens. This only increased fanatical resistance. Over a million Afghans would die in the conflict just as millions of Vietnamese died.
Then came the Taliban after a civil war in 1996. And women were executed for not covering up sufficiently in public, even stoned to death.
10
Inviting the Taliban gave them the validation they have always sought.
Was ISIS booked?
14
Only jerry Falwell jr.
3
Here we are after 18 years of American hubris. It's as if no one in the Cheney administration had ever read a history book, or even some fiction, regarding Afghanistan and the region. Kipling's "The Man Who Would be King" tells us pretty much all we need to know, never mind every failed occupation or failed attempt to colonize the area before and after.
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@Bradley Bleck - But Cheney had read the books which is why he chose Afghanistan knowing that it would be nothing but an endless hole of weapons sales with no end in sight. Not to mention, fields of poppies everywhere to make some quick cash off of.
4
Prior to the last attack, there was one attack on July 1, 2019, in which 40 people were killed. On August 31, 2019, there was attack on Kunduz. Mr. Trump knew of all these attacks and the death toll but he chose only the last attack as his main reason. The Talibans are not trustworthy as they killing innocent people. They have no respect for any cease fire to give a proper atmoshphere for negotiations. They don't want to have anything with the present government in Kabul. Incidentally, that also reminds me the Vietnam negotiation in Paris between US and Vietnam. Even during this negotiation, US intensified the bombings on Vietnam. Why this negotiation continued for full one year. It is like Mr. Trumb is participating in a hide and seek show where he would keep all the trump cards and would only show at the end of the game.
4
Trump is a very shallow individual. Follow the money and power in reference to him wanting to get re-elected and you know Trump. It’s pretty simple.
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Most of us people in the US don’t believe it either.
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A proper title would be "English speaking Afghans that American reporters talk to"
2
There should be NO talks until there are women (plural) negotiators represented on the American, Taliban, and Afghan side.
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Trump neither understood nor cared about the intricacies of the US/Afghan/Taliban negotiations. When someone spoke of a successful summit at Camp David, Trump salivated. It could be even better than THE APPRENTICE. Might even be worth foregoing a few days of playing golf at a Trump property.
Oophs, the script got complicated: the Taliban feared a trap and the Afghans weren't on board.
On a pretext, Trump screamed foul and tweeted mightily lots of secrets. As a former Foreign Service Officer, I look askance at anyone who breaks silence on delicate secret negotiations.
I doubt that this ever crossed Trump's mind. So on to 'successful' negotiations with North Korea and China. As candidate Trump phrased it "You will get tired of winning." Oh yeah!
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@Keith Wheelock ~
"Trump neither understood nor cared about the intricacies of the" ... name a country or issue ... "negotiations."
Just needs to prove how gerat and macho leader he is.
9
Comical. What is so hard to explain? The Taliban just proved there is no need or justification for negotiation.
But keep up those negative headlines. It keeps ruining your credibility.
5
@duane Mathias. And as we all know, credibility is practically trump’s middle name! Except for the, what, 10,000 lies he’s told in the past three years? We’re losing count.
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@Duane Mathias You know what's comical? This administration pretending like they even care what happens to Afghanistan or its people, when the truth is they could not shove their way to the exits fast enough.
Two decades of war, thousands of lives lost, hundreds of thousands more maimed and displaced. What have we proven, other than that Americans are the worst allies and even worse liars?
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11,000.
1