Pick to lead Afghanistan forces says situation is worsening

[webfact]

Pick to lead Afghanistan forces says situation is worsening
By RICHARD LARDNER

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's nominee to be the next U.S. commander in Afghanistan said Thursday the security situation in the war-torn country is deteriorating and assured senators he will do a thorough review of American troop levels needed to stabilize the nation.

Army Lt. Gen. John W. "Mick" Nicholson Jr. told the Senate Armed Services Committee he will have a better sense of conditions in Afghanistan within a few months if he is confirmed by the Senate.

As wartime commanders must often do, Nicholson walked a fine line during his confirmation hearing. He supported the Obama administration's exit strategy, which critics have derided as politically driven, while also promising the senators his decisions will be grounded in sound military strategy.

He peppered his answers with phrases like "right-sized" and "right-sourced" to make sure Afghanistan didn't devolve into the same terrorist harbor it was before the 9/11 attacks. The U.S. mission in Afghanistan is to conduct counterterrorism missions and to train and assist the Afghan security forces.

Nicholson would succeed Gen. John F. Campbell, who is expected to retire.

There are about 9,800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. At Campbell's urging, Obama decided last October to abandon his plan to reduce troop levels to near zero by the end of 2016. Instead, he said they would shrink to 5,500 by the end of the year. His advisers could press Obama to maintain the current level of 9,800 troops until he leaves office in January 2017.

Asked at a Pentagon news conference whether the Taliban is making a comeback, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said: "That's happened this past fighting season. We expected that." And while the Afghans fought well last year, he said, they are still "a force-in-the-making" that can be expected to perform better this year as they gain more experience and capability.

Carter said Campbell has not recommended to him any increase in U.S. troop levels.

During an exchange with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Nicholson said he would be concerned that the military would not be able to perform counterterrorism operations if the number of American troops fell to a hypothetical 1,000 suggested by Graham.

Nicholson said he supported the decision to retain the 9,800 American troops and he agreed with Campbell's approach. But the general also said at numerous points during the hearing that he would conduct his own assessment.

Although American forces are no longer engaged in direct action missions against the Taliban, Nicholson said he could not envision U.S. troops remaining on the sidelines if the strategic city of Kandahar were at risk. Kandahar, in southern Afghanistan, is the spiritual birthplace of the Taliban.

"We need to prevent Kandahar from falling into the hands of the Taliban," Nicholson said.

The committee chairman, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., opened Nicholson's confirmation hearing with a blistering assessment of Obama's handling of the war in Afghanistan and the president's adherence to a "calendar-based withdrawal."

"By now, we should have learned from the precipitous withdrawal from Iraq and the disaster that ensued that wars do not end because politicians say so," McCain said. "Nor will any politician be able to schedule an end to the threat of radical Islamist terrorism emanating from Afghanistan or the region more broadly."

McCain prefaced a question to Nicholson about the security situation in Afghanistan with his own stark appraisal of the conditions there. He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran, and the presence of the Islamic State extremist group in Afghanistan.

"The view of many of us is that the security situation in Afghanistan has been deteriorating rather than improving," McCain said.

"Sir, I agree with your assessment," Nicholson said. Later, he added, "This is Afghanistan. There will always be some level of violence in Afghanistan."

Nicholson, a 1982 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a career infantry officer, is currently commander of NATO's Allied Land Command, headquartered at Izmir, Turkey. Among numerous tours of duty in Afghanistan starting in 2006, he served as deputy chief of staff of operations for the international military command and for U.S. forces in 2010. Before that he spent 14 months as director of the Pentagon's Afghanistan-Pakistan coordination cell.
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Associated Press writer Robert Burns contributed to this report.


-- (c) Associated Press 2016-01-29

[craigt3365]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

[DaddyWarbucks]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

[simple1]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Remember Iran still hosts 1 million Afghan refugees. It appears Iran is engaged in complex realpolitik.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/afghanistan/2015-06-21/enemy-irans-enemy-afghanistan

[craigt3365]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

[Baerboxer]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Don't worry, Iran will buy lovely new French weapons so the supply to the Taliban will increase.

[Andaman Al]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

Yes its a big problem because it stops the Americans, Brits and French from supplying them! Big loss of income for us there.!

[hawker9000]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

Yes its a big problem because it stops the Americans, Brits and French from supplying them! Big loss of income for us there.!

Oh I guess you haven't heard about France being second on Iran's world tour? The Italians did get their licks in first, but I'm sure the French will prove just as, emm, well, froggy... You should try & keep up.

Afghanistan: just another Obama success story.

[craigt3365]

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

Yes its a big problem because it stops the Americans, Brits and French from supplying them! Big loss of income for us there.!

You're saying these Western countries are selling arms to the Taliban? Really? Hmm.....

[erobando]

He cited recent battlefield successes by the Taliban, who he said are being aided with weapons from Iran

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

If Iran is one of the "biggest problems" in the Middle East, then so is every other nation in the region.

Iran is engaged in a regional power struggle and acts like pretty much other nation has in the history of the world. They ally with groups that further their interests, in this case taking the "enemy of my enemy" approach. (In this case, the enemy is Daesh.)

Posters can make moralistic statements but Iran must co-exist with others in the region. If they think the Afghanistan government (who they generally support) will fail, it's better to have positive relations with other groups who they think will likely end up in complete (or a share of) power. They obviously think that Daesh is the bigger threat.

As far as supporting terrorists, Saudi Arabia and it's allies also support groups like Al Nusra.

Who Israel might support is questionable... but we do know that they conduct targeted assassinations and bomb sovereign nations however they see fit. From Iran's perspective, Israel is bully nation... the most powerful military in the region, equipped with WMD's and backed by the most powerful nation on earth.

And Iran's biggest "terrorist" project, Hezbollah, is a legal entity in its homeland which holds elected seats in Parliament. And when was the last time they were even accused of targeting civilians?

The Middle East now isn't much different the constant power struggles that existed in Western Europe until the end of WWII... this part of SE Asia was the same until the late 80's.

Maybe decades from now nations in the region will realize that cooperating economically is better than non-stop war.

The US engaging more with Iran is at least a start. Demonizing / blaming Iran as the primary cause of the Middle East's problems is not.

[simple1]

Lovely...

Now let's start a war with Iran.

Lovely...

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

<snip>

And Iran's biggest "terrorist" project, Hezbollah, is a legal entity in its homeland which holds elected seats in Parliament. And when was the last time they were even accused of targeting civilians?

Post removed to enable reply.

Hezbollah military, fighting alongside Assad forces in Syria, have been reported deliberately targeting & killing Syrian Sunni civilians on a number of occasions.

[craigt3365]

If Iran is one of the "biggest problems" in the Middle East, then so is every other nation in the region.

Iran is engaged in a regional power struggle and acts like pretty much other nation has in the history of the world. They ally with groups that further their interests, in this case taking the "enemy of my enemy" approach. (In this case, the enemy is Daesh.)

Posters can make moralistic statements but Iran must co-exist with others in the region. If they think the Afghanistan government (who they generally support) will fail, it's better to have positive relations with other groups who they think will likely end up in complete (or a share of) power. They obviously think that Daesh is the bigger threat.

As far as supporting terrorists, Saudi Arabia and it's allies also support groups like Al Nusra.

Who Israel might support is questionable... but we do know that they conduct targeted assassinations and bomb sovereign nations however they see fit. From Iran's perspective, Israel is bully nation... the most powerful military in the region, equipped with WMD's and backed by the most powerful nation on earth.

And Iran's biggest "terrorist" project, Hezbollah, is a legal entity in its homeland which holds elected seats in Parliament. And when was the last time they were even accused of targeting civilians?

The Middle East now isn't much different the constant power struggles that existed in Western Europe until the end of WWII... this part of SE Asia was the same until the late 80's.

Maybe decades from now nations in the region will realize that cooperating economically is better than non-stop war.

The US engaging more with Iran is at least a start. Demonizing / blaming Iran as the primary cause of the Middle East's problems is not.

Jeez....again....where did I say Iran was the primary cause of the ME's problems? The article says they are supplying weapons to terrorists in Afghanistan. I just re-posted that. You're right, all the major players in the region are causing problems. It's a religious war.

[Andaman Al]

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

Yes its a big problem because it stops the Americans, Brits and French from supplying them! Big loss of income for us there.!

You're saying these Western countries are selling arms to the Taliban? Really? Hmm.....

I think you re a little naive concerning the arms industry.

[craigt3365]

Where did I say that? Iran is one of the biggest problems in the ME. Supplying weapons to all sorts of terrorist groups. Or perhaps you didn't know this???

Yes its a big problem because it stops the Americans, Brits and French from supplying them! Big loss of income for us there.!

You're saying these Western countries are selling arms to the Taliban? Really? Hmm.....

I think you re a little naive concerning the arms industry.

I've done lots of work with the arms industry. No expert, but far from naive. I know they sell weapons all around the world. Highly doubt Taliban is on their list of customers in their annual report.