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Testing Nato’s determinationThe POST, Sun, Nov,11, 2007.Pervaiz Iqbal Cheema
It is reported that Taliban have been receiving arms through a sympathetic leaders who not only lives in areas close to Iran but has also opted to remain anonymous. It is also reported that both Iranians and some Pakistanis have been fighting along with the Taliban. The Afghan authorities have often stressed that Taliban ranks are reinforced by outsiders. Many factors account for dismal performances of Afghan forces including Afghan police. Reportedly around forty percent of Afghan officers had defected to Taliban in one week in Farah province and those who remained with Afghan force were either unwilling or unable to put up much of a fight. Local residents have complained that NATO-led troops under Italian command in western Afghanistan have not helped the local forces to retake the districts. By and large an impression is gaining ground that the foreign forces rarely help the locals to effectively resist the Taliban onslaught. On the other hand NATO commanders also admit that they have a limited window in which to defeat the Taliban and provide much needed development before the Afghan public turns against their presence. The public opinion in the west is also increasingly getting frustrated and already voices asking for withdrawal are on the rise. Indeed the task of the foreign forces is not an easy one. Many factors account for extremely slow progress in Afghanistan which in turn has made the task of NATO forces complex and difficult. Since 2001 when the American led invasion of Afghanistan installed their man in Kabul, the violence has been steadily rising despite the growth of force level from 5000 in 2003 to 40,000 today. Besides, the continued bloodshed has also taken a substantive tool of public’s patience in the west. There is no doubt that NATO’s first venture outside Europe is in deep trouble. Not only all the components parts of NATO force are willing to go to combat zones but many of them have also expressed their unwillingness to fight. However they are willing to serve in non-combat zones. Many countries are beginning to consider withdrawal of their troops from Afghanistan. The latest case is that of Germany whose parliament is actively considering pulling their troops out of Afghanistan. The Americans have been regularly sending desperate appeals to Germany, France, Italy and Spain and requesting them to switch their troops’ role from peacekeeping and training to combat duties, no encouraging signs have so far appeared. Even Canada is reviewing it role. The reports issued by some western think tanks such as Chathem House have reportedly concluded that the conflict in Afghanistan is gradually being regionalized involving tribal areas of Pakistan and alleged arms supplies from Iran. It is a foregone conclusion that longer the war lasts in areas where ethnic and linguistic commonalities are so pronounced, the danger of a conflict acquiring regional flavor cannot be altogether dismissed. To make thing more complicated is the rapid increase in sympathies for Taliban. Many factors account for this dramatic increase in Afghans supporting a return to Taliban rule. To begin with Afghan can accommodate the presence of foreigners as a necessary evil for some times but if the presence is stretched over long period, they begin to prepare grounds for questioning. Invariably the force hailed as friends and liberators initially often is viewed as occupiers if their presence exceeds the anticipated time limits. Many Afghans who thought initially that the presence of the Americans may help Afghanistan’s transformation from a purely tribal society and war ravaged country to a relatively more modern society and reconstructed stable Afghanistan have begun to demonstrate their frustrations. Neither the reconstruction nor developmental plans have materialized as were envisaged initially nor has the foreign forces been able to crush the Taliban movement. To further complicate the situation are factors like incompetent Afghan leader who opted to depend more on non-Pakhtoon elements than on the major faction of Afghan population, slow reconstruction work, deteriorating law and order situation , meager employment possibilities, corruption in higher echelons of Afghan government and the uncontrolled activities of both the war lords as well as drug barons etc. are all making their contributions. One of the major element that can not only help in maintaining law and order situation but also defend the country and effectively deal with insurgencies like that of Taliban is virtually non-existent. Admittedly the Americans are making efforts to produce a well trained Afghan military predicting that it would be ready by 2009 but many important Afghan officials of the incumbent government in Kabul have dismissed this claim and have realistically assessed that Afghan army capable to defend Afghanistan and effectively fight internal uprising will at least take another ten years. Another factor that influences the will to fight is the low salaries of the soldiers. Given the operative condition in Afghanistan, to expect that the soldier would fight with all the dedication is somewhat unrealistic. The low salaries have motivated many soldiers and policemen to follow the corrupt habits of upper echelon of Afghan society especially in poppy growing areas. The police officials are known to be deeply involved in such corrupt practices. Reports also indicate that work on credible police has hardly begun. It appears that the real burden of maintaining law and order and proper pace of developmental activities has so far not realistically assessed and if it has been accurately assessed, then the implementation of the entire policy pursuits raises many difficult and complex questions. For one thing the west has not delivered even in economic terms what they promised to provide to Afghanistan. Lack of promised flow of funds must have created difficulties for the incumbent government even if it is assumed that it is insincerely pursuing often repeated goals and objectives. Apart from training Afghan armed forces, the impression that is widely circulating is that the Americans are keen to limp NATO with increased burden. On the other hand many member countries of NATO have already demonstrated their unwillingness to continue sharing the burden in the Afghanistan. The Taliban successes are not only further putting strains on NATO’s solidarity but are testing its resolve to stay in Afghanistan. The Secretary General of NATO Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in an attempt to motivate the NATO member to contribute more troops even warned the member that if NATO fails in Afghanistan, the consequence of this failure would be dire.
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