Was It Folly For The Us And Uk To Withdraw From Afghanistan?

[ichkeria]

The Afghan general quoted below plainly thinks so

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-58068299

[ToraToraTora]

the sad thing is if we did let them in they'd try and turn us into where they came from anyway.

[Peter Pedant]

Hague had a not very articulate op-ed piece in the Times

I wrote to him and said tommy's lives werent a good enough trade for some Kabullis wanting to go to a western university

I also pointed out that they were shooting at us, as they didnt want us there

[david small]

Since 1842 and the ignominious retreat of the British from Kabul. Afghanistan has been synonymous with the eventual defeat of interfering nation’s. We should not have gone into this money/death pit at all. However, we once again stuck our nose into a culture we do not fully understand or appreciate. Leaving like this, though inevitable, hands over to the Taliban vengeance and recriminations ad nausea. Education, prolonged and fully supported may have eased things eventually. Too late yet again to setup now. As regards the interpreter’s, they and their families should be safely rehoused either here or the US. It is a debt of honour. Do we honour it? Did we before? Answer, often No.

[Peter Pedant]

// the sad thing is if we did let them in they'd try and turn us into where they came from anyway.//

oh TTT dont let the muslims get on top of you !

[naomi24]

TTT. 19.30. You’re right.

[Peter Pedant]

// However, we once again stuck our nose into a culture we do not fully understand or appreciate.//

yeah the culture is they like killing each other. I am just astounded there is anyone left we could colonise

[ToraToraTora]

If they do get overrun by the Taliban then that must also be what many of the civilians want.

[Mozz71]

Fine, then the UK, amongst others, have the blood of innocents on their hands. We should never have occupied Afghanistan in the first place, but as we did, we should not be abandoning it's people to the fundamentalists lunatics.

[Mozz71]

Tora- //If they do get overrun by the Taliban then that must also be what many of the civilians want.//

Tell that to the women and children. I suspect they may disagree.

[ToraToraTora]

the country does not want change Mozz, they have demonstrated that many times. What should we do occupy it indefinitely?

[Jackdaw33]

david small@1934.

A brilliant, concise summary of the problem. I could not have put it better myself is so few words.

[Mozz71]

Toro, we made the mistake 30 years ago. Nothing we can do about that now, but we should not run away from the responsibilities our occupation caused.

[Mozz71]

David @ 19:34.

I can only agree with JD. Eloquently put. Ichky, give that man BA.

[jno]

perhaps Joanna Lumley should get on the interrpreters' case; she managed to shame the government into letting Gurkhas who had fought for Britain to live in Britain.

[ToraToraTora]

ok mozz how long should be stay?How many people should we sacrifice?

[Peter Pedant]

afghanistan was called Russia's Vietnam
I cant think why we went in after them ....

[Mozz71]

I don't know Tora, I'm no military strategist. All I know is that if we pull out, we are partially responsible for every attrocity that happens there from now on.

[Stickybottle]

No it was not folly
You can only stabilise a country for so long before you have to leave them to their own devices
Countless programmes and news reports have shown the Afghan army to be about as much use as a whicker canoe but we could not stay there indefinitely

[ToraToraTora]

Mozz: We cannot fix Afghanistan, so it makes no difference if we stay except in how many service personnel we sacrifice. They will do what they want as soon as we leave whether its now or in 10 years. Unless you are advocating total war from the west with millions of troops going through every nook and cranny installing a puppet government and running it indefinitely. Even then we'll be stuck in a fruitless guerilla war without end. No we must leave them to it now, we tried.

[Bazile]

Unfortunately pulling out doesn't solve anything .

The country will quickly return to a breeding ground for terrorism .

That terrorism will once again will cross international borders .

What happens there will affect us here and and the rest of the west