Focus Kabul:Major Gathering of Leaders Discuss New Afghanistan Strategy - context and cost

Several important figures met in Kabul,Afghanistan on 27 September to go over the new Afghanistan strategy,which is now seen as part of President Donald Trump's South Asia strategy including Pakistan and India as well as Afghanistan.General John Nicholson,commander of all NATO and US forces in Afghanistan,welcomed NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg;US Ambassador to NATO Kay Bailey Hutchison;and US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to Kabul for the high level discussions with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Dr.Abdullah Abdullah,as well as other Afghan national security officials.
A news conference was held with President Ghani,Mr.Stoltenberg and Mr.Mattis following the talks,which went on despite a rocket attack on Kabul International Airport claimed by both the Taliban and ISIL-K militants.Several civilians were reportedly injured in the attack.*
Mr.Stoltenberg told the reporters that:
About 13,000 troops from 39 different countries serve in our Resolute Support Mission.Around half are US troops,with the rest coming from European Allies and our partner nations.
Much progress has been made,but there is still too much violence,too much instability and still too much corruption.
NATO's presence in Afghanistan has come at a great cost-a human cost.Hundreds of thousands of brave men and women have served under the NATO flag.Thousands have lost their lives,and many more have suffered visible and invisible wounds.
There is also a financial cost.The international community has spent billions sustaining our presence,and in support of the Afghan forces.
So we know the cost of staying in Afghanistan;but the cost of leaving would be even higher.If NATO forces leave too soon,there is a risk that Afghanistan may return to a state of chaos and become once more a safe haven for international terrorism.The last time that happened,it lead to the 9-11 terrorist attacks on the US,in which almost 3,000 people were murdered.We cannot allow that to happen again.
NATO leaving would also risk further instability in the region,including refugees fleeing for the safety of Europe.
NATO doesn't quit when the going gets tough.That is why I much welcome that many nations have pledged further contributions to our mission here in Afghanistan,including more troops from the US.And I welcome President Trump's new conditions-based approach to Afghanistan and the region.
NATO is committed to funding the Afghan security forces until at least 2020,and we will continue to provide almost a billion each year to the Afghan defence and security forces.*
Defense Secretary Mattis has signed orders to deploy about 3,000 more US troops to train,advise and assist Afghan forces.They are either on the way or have at least been notified,he told reporters.That will bring the US total to about 14,000 troops in Afghanistan.*
We will not abandon Afghanistan to a merciless enemy trying to kill its way to power,Mr.Mattis said at the news conference.
This new strategy is conditions-based and not time-based;because war is principally a matter of will,and we've made clear that we have the will to stand together.Through our partnership,we will suffocate any hope that al-Qaida,or ISIS-Daesh,Haqqani or the Taliban have of winning by killing.
This South Asia strategy and this renewed commitment is an opportunity for Pakistan to engage in the counterterror campaign.*
President Ghani noted India's generosity in pledging a billion dollars of aid to Afghanistan.*
Asked about the Russian and Iranian role in supplying weapons to the Taliban,Mr.Mattis said he's not willing to discuss the specifics at this time on those two countries.*
Added Mr.Stoltenberg:
At our defence ministerial meeting in June,we actually decided to increase our NATO troop levels in Afghanistan,and several Allies have already started to step up to their pledges to send more troops.So they are sending more troops to Afghanistan because it is in their interest to have a more stable Afghanistan.*
Reflecting on history,Mr.Mattis recalled that when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in late 1979,it upended the society,disrupting tribal alliances and so forth.It opened the door to Iaslamist extremist groups setting up in the country and is what ultimately led us to where we are at this point.*

Afghan War Strategy:Building on Success with Greater Flexibility

On the third leg of his major overseas trip,US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter met in Kabul,Afghanistan with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Dr.Abdullah Abdullah yesterday 12 July,as well as the Afghan defence and interior ministers.Dr.Carter had previously attended the NATO Warsaw Summit and secretly traveled to Baghdad,Iraq on 11 July.
In a Kabul news conference,Dr.Carter said he and the Afghan leaders discussed:
1.the US commitments to enhance the authorities of our ground commanders;
2.maintain our financial commitment to the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces;and
3.retain a more substantial US force presence of 8400 troops into 2017 as they continue their twofold mission against the Taliban and other Islamist extremist militants of training,advising and assisting the ANDSF,along with counterterrorism support.*
The meetings reaffirmed to me that we have strong partners here,with a common vision focused on a secure and prosperous future for the Afghan people,Dr.Carter noted.At the Warsaw Summit,coalition partners confirmed their commitment of financial sustainment to the ANDSF and of the Resolute Support Mission.Carter commended the ANDSF for fighting courageously last year during a tough fighting season and for their continued dedication in the face of formidable challenges this year.We are looking to build on their successes to find ways to support and enable them more effectively,he added.He and commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan General John Nicholson,US Army,discussed President Barack Obama's decision to grant additional flexibility in the use of U.S. forces.This added flexibility,coupled with new integration of the A-29 and MD-530 close air support platforms,reflects our determination to seize every opportunity possible to use our resources in the theatre to the greatest possible effectiveness.*
We're with you.We stand by you and we will continue to work hard together to finish the mission we started,Dr.Carter assured the Afghan people.He thanked the American,NATO and Afghan troops who have served and sacrificed together over the past 15 years in the name of peace,security and freedom,and who continue that mission today.*
The Embraer A-29 Super Tucano Ground Attack aircraft was selected by the US Air Force for its Light Air Support Program in 2013,with the immediate intent of supplying it to Afghanistan,and then to other US allies.This Brazilian airplane is a vital element of the US Afghan strategy supporting the development of an indigenous Afghan Air Force.The MD-530F Close Air Attack helicopter is being used both in a counterterrorist role and as a trainer for Afghan Air Force pilots of their Russian Mi-17 transport and Mi-35 attack helicopters.

Most US Troops Will Stay in Afghanistan,President Says - General Nicholson heeded

President Barack Obama said US troop levels in Afghanistan will be cut to 8400 from 9800 today and stay at 8400 through the end of his administration,not be reduced to 5500 by the end of 2016 as he had originally planned.The situation is still precarious,Mr.Obama explained,so it is in our national security interest,especially after all the blood and treasure we've invested over the years,that we give our Afghan partners the best chance to succeed.*
US Forces entered Afghanistan immediately following the 9-11 attacks.Today they implement both training of the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces and counterterror operations in the Operation Freedom's Sentinel part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission.Other NATO Allies keep around 6,000 troops in Afghanistan for the training mission and say they will remain there.While the ANDSF still lack adequate aviation,intelligence and logistics,according to US Army General John Nicholson's 90-day review,the Taliban Islamist extremist militants continue to control swaths of the country in its north and its south and conduct suicide bombings in the country's cities,including the capital Kabul.Thus the President has accepted the recommendation of new NATO and US commander in Afghanistan General Nicholson to sustain a robust US presence there.Since the US entered the Afghan War in 2001,more than 2300 US troops have been killed in it.Last month,the President permitted the US cadre to expand its operations by directly hitting the Taliban with airstrikes again,not just al-Qaida and the Haqqani Network,and not just when US and partner forces are directly threatened or an Afghan position is in danger of being overrun.This new authority has already been used,a senior US official indicated.