Word: taliban
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...combined strategy will quickly destroy al-Qaeda and destabilize an increasingly well-organized Taliban, providing a vacuum into which the strengthening Afghan forces and reforming Afghan government can step. From this new position of strength, the Afghan government should be able to keep the Taliban at bay and keep al-Qaeda...
These new objectives take into consideration the realities of Afghan tribal society. Obama has wisely accepted the Taliban as a faction of that society and is choosing instead to focus on the real threat to American security, radical al-Qaeda...
...without merit, we worry that Obama’s lack of commitment to protecting democracy will give Afghan citizens a sense that the U.S. is not fully committed to their well-being and that the Afghan government is no more legitimate than the parallel one operated by the Taliban. They, and Pakistan, will rightly continue to hedge their bets and be non-committal to either warring party...
...demonstrable commitment to building a robust, honest, and representative Afghan nation, though expensive, would foster friendships and alliances that would also help achieve Obama’s ultimate objectives—to push out al-Qaeda and quiet the Taliban. Pakistan’s cooperation is especially vital to these ends. Its government must know that America is a committed and honest ally if we are to expect more help in achieving them...
Despite the uncertain road ahead, Obama is correct in asserting that, if Afghan security forces cannot begin to keep the Taliban at bay and al-Qaeda out of its borders on their own, an American military drawdown would be disastrous for America’s own security...