by Editor (Editor's Desk, Crescent International Vol. 41, No. 3, Jumada' al-Akhirah, 1433)
As the US and its NATO allies head to Chicago (May 20–21) to discuss the future of Afghanistan, several issues have become clear.
The US-NATO alliance has been thoroughly defeated by the ragtag Afghans as well as bankrupted by the war. So what is left to talk about?
Before heading to Chicago, the Americans signed two agreements with their Afghan puppet Hamid Karzai. One relates to night raids that violate Afghan cultural norms. Far from achieving any military objectives, they have aroused the wrath of all Afghans. The Americans handed this responsibility to the Afghans. The Americans’ real interest lies in securing agreement to station troops in Afghanistan beyond 2014 to secure access to Afghanistan’s mineral riches estimated at $4 trillion. This agreement was signed on April 22. The other purpose is to facilitate the transport of gas and oil from Central Asia. Grabbing natural resources, not the nonsensical claims of “liberating” Afghan women from the clutches of the “wicked” Afghan men, as so frequently parroted by Hillary Clinton and other Western do-gooders, is the real reason.
What will NATO officials talk about in Chicago? US President Barack Obama has said he wants NATO members to “stay the course” in Afgha-nistan and even chip in with money. He will find few takers. They are all getting the hell out of there. NATO and American troops have no stomach left to fight the intrepid Afghans. So much for relying on hi-tech weapons!
