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US retreat from Afghanistan is a geopolitical masterstroke

striver44

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By: Striver44

Nobody ever realized that by letting Taliban ruled over Afghanistan once more, The US not only lifted itself out of the burden of endless counterinsurgency, it also potentially brings a huge geopolitical impact to the two most important US rivals in the region namely Iran and PRC.

Since the US started it's hasty retrogade from Afghanistan 1st of May this year, the Taliban has thus far captured 32 districts while besieging many provinicial capital such as Lashkar Gah, while cutting the main roads from Kabul to Kandahar. Thus if it continue n this trajectory, it will be (in my best estimate) a year or two before the Taliban once again ruled over Kabul.


By having an puritanical Islamic militants ruling over Afghanistan once more, the relative safety provided by the US +NATO presence in the decade since 2001 would all be over and the geopolitical reality were once more shifting, most notably countries that will be most affected by this is the PRC, Pakistan and Iran.

The Taliban like most islamist militant group despised China, due to the latter mass incarcerations of muslims in Xinjiang, by having Kabul administration replaced by the Talibs, the PRC which lays close . This could in fact affect their BRI projects.
o8uCjr__Fyl-T4_4Q-W4fEEk88TmqGvdX7XTmavKFv5sLqwdkNKKbHWXEYuLyJHM8uypE0dH2U8ajGT3rXVxhYHpudaELLIKPc3t-RTzo__mTl2yKhxM6w

and Beijing realized this and isn't cool either with the prospect.

you could sense this from their mouthpiece Xinhua, who do some sort of influence operation to keep the US stay in AFghanistan.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-12/24/c_137696107.htm

so does global times

and by their statements from their MoFA,
"At present, the unilateral withdrawal of US and NATO troops at the critical stage of the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan has brought uncertainties to Afghanistan's domestic situation and regional security landscape. As neighbors,"


also from Hua Chunying:

It needs to be pointed out that the recent abrupt US announcement of complete withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan has led to a succession of explosive attacks throughout the country, worsening the security situation and threatening peace and stability as well as people’s life and safety. China calls on foreign troops in Afghanistan to take into full account the security of people in the country and the region, pull out in a responsible manner and avoid inflicting more turmoil and suffering on the Afghan people.


another plus to having a unstable Afghanistan, is that China for once more need's to ramp up it's land force and increase it's scpe of internal security in Xinjiang, this could increase the cost and burden as China is also facing the Quad alliance currently being propped up by the Biden admin.

China already spent more on internal defense than their external defense, especially since Xi Jinping tightens it's grip on power

Across China, domestic security accounted for 6.1% of government spending in 2017, the Ministry of Finance said. That translates into 1.24 trillion yuan ($196 billion) and compares with 1.02 trillion yuan in central-government funding for the military.

On the contrary, now the US could harness all of it's power and resurces against China on a multi theater front, the most notable is the Pacific. The US compared to China, didn't have any significant ideological or military fore right his fence. The US could better use the money and resource originally for it'expense in Afghanistan into building and enhancing alliance in particular the QUAD and keeping ASEAN from ever getting very close to China.

another thing to consider is that once more the US Navy is given priority over the US Army, as the battlefields have now changed from the rough desert and mountains of Afghanistan to the open ocean of the Pacific. This will prioritize long range firepower like hypersonic and ballistic missile, something that China have an advantage over the US until very recently as well as ships and long range aviation.

another potential country that could be affected by the Taliban return to power is none other than Iran, not that Iran shares hundreds of kilometres of border with the Taliban, as history suggest , Taliban which is a Sunni militant group had a natural hatred of the Shiite country next door. Taliban doesn't have a friendly history with both Shiite inside and outside the country.


also the the likelihood of the Hazaras (an ethnic Shiite) living in Afghanistan getting persecuted by the Taliban could potentially forced Iran to create some sort of Afghan Hezbollah, possibly creating enmity between Iran and the Sunni Pashtun dominated Taliban. Iran could found itself entrenched in a two front conflict with Israel+GCC in the West and Taliban in the East.
@Dalit
 
Last edited:
By: Striver44

Nobody ever realized that by letting Taliban ruled over Afghanistan once more, The US not only lifted itself out of the burden of endless counterinsurgency, it also potentially brings a huge geopolitical impact to the two most important US rivals in the region namely Iran and PRC.

Since the US started it's hasty retrogade from Afghanistan 1st of May this year, the Taliban has thus far captured 32 districts while besieging many provinicial capital such as Lashkar Gah, while cutting the main roads from Kabul to Kandahar. Thus if it continue n this trajectory, it will be (in my best estimate) a year or two before the Taliban once again ruled over Kabul.


By having an puritanical Islamic militants ruling over Afghanistan once more, the relative safety provided by the US +NATO presence in the decade since 2001 would all be over and the geopolitical reality were once more shifting, most notably countries that will be most affected by this is the PRC, Pakistan and Iran.

The Taliban like most islamist militant group despised China, due to the latter mass incarcerations of muslims in Xinjiang, by having Kabul administration replaced by the Talibs, the PRC which lays close . This could in fact affect their BRI projects.
o8uCjr__Fyl-T4_4Q-W4fEEk88TmqGvdX7XTmavKFv5sLqwdkNKKbHWXEYuLyJHM8uypE0dH2U8ajGT3rXVxhYHpudaELLIKPc3t-RTzo__mTl2yKhxM6w

and Beijing realized this and isn't cool either with the prospect.

you could sense this from their mouthpiece Xinhua, who do some sort of influence operation to keep the US stay in AFghanistan.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-12/24/c_137696107.htm

so does global times

and by their statements from their MoFA,
"At present, the unilateral withdrawal of US and NATO troops at the critical stage of the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan has brought uncertainties to Afghanistan's domestic situation and regional security landscape. As neighbors,"


also from Hua Chunying:

It needs to be pointed out that the recent abrupt US announcement of complete withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan has led to a succession of explosive attacks throughout the country, worsening the security situation and threatening peace and stability as well as people’s life and safety. China calls on foreign troops in Afghanistan to take into full account the security of people in the country and the region, pull out in a responsible manner and avoid inflicting more turmoil and suffering on the Afghan people.


another plus to having a unstable Afghanistan, is that China for once more need's to ramp up it's land force and increase it's scpe of internal security in Xinjiang, this could increase the cost and burden as China is also facing the Quad alliance currently being propped up by the Biden admin.

China already spent more on internal defense than their external defense, especially since Xi Jinping tightens it's grip on power



On the contrary, now the US could harness all of it's power and resurces against China on a multi theater front, the most notable is the Pacific. The US compared to China, didn't have any significant ideological or military fore right his fence. The US could better use the money and resource originally for it'expense in Afghanistan into building and enhancing alliance in particular the QUAD and keeping ASEAN from ever getting very close to China.

another thing to consider is that once more the US Navy is given priority over the US Army, as the battlefields have now changed from the rough desert and mountains of Afghanistan to the open ocean of the Pacific. This will prioritize long range firepower like hypersonic and ballistic missile, something that China have an advantage over the US until very recently as well as ships and long range aviation.

another potential country that could be affected by the Taliban return to power is none other than Iran, not that Iran shares hundreds of kilometres of border with the Taliban, as history suggest , Taliban which is a Sunni militant group had a natural hatred of the Shiite country next door. Taliban doesn't have a friendly history with both Shiite inside and outside the country.


also the the likelihood of the Hazaras (an ethnic Shiite) living in Afghanistan getting persecuted by the Taliban could potentially forced Iran to create some sort of Afghan Hezbollah, possibly creating enmity between Iran and the Sunni Pashtun dominated Taliban. Iran could found itself entrenched in a two front conflict with Israel+GCC in the West and Taliban in the East.
@Dalit

How far are you from Afg? at least 3000 miles?

Your article reflects the same, Far from ground reality and facts............
 
Boy you should compete in olympics because your somersaults are just mind blowing.

At one side Americans blamed Iran to fund Taliban and now they think Taliban will attack Iran. Amazing story !
 
LOL Please yourself even when the reality is different.
no, said Hua Chunying :lol:

It needs to be pointed out that the recent abrupt US announcement of complete withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan has led to a succession of explosive attacks throughout the country, worsening the security situation and threatening peace and stability as well as people’s life and safety. China calls on foreign troops in Afghanistan to take into full account the security of people in the country and the region, pull out in a responsible manner and avoid inflicting more turmoil and suffering on the Afghan people.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Remarks on Deadly Serial Attacks in Afghanistan
Boy you should compete in olympics because your somersaults are just mind blowing.

At one side Americans blamed Iran to fund Taliban and now they think Taliban will attack Iran. Amazing story !
it's more like Iran interests in Afghanistan will be severely harmed, Taliban is a Sunni-Pashtun movement, the perspective for the Shia Hazara is bleak, this will somehow forced Iran to step up, possibly creating some sort of Afghan Hezbollah.

Creating an Afghan Hezbollah will definitely clash with Taliban interests in the country.
 
U.S.'s irresponsible withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan begins


Xinhua News Agency, Kabul, May 9th (International Observation) The U.S.'s irresponsible withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is beginning to show its evil consequences

Xinhua News Agency reporter Shi Xiantao

A series of explosions occurred near a school in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, on the 8th, killing more than 50 people and injuring more than 100 others. At the same time, the Taliban intensified their offensive against government forces on the battlefield, causing a large number of people to be displaced.

Analysts pointed out that since the United States and NATO troops officially began to withdraw from Afghanistan on the 1st, the security situation in Afghanistan has continued to deteriorate. The United States has withdrawn its troops from Afghanistan in an irresponsible manner in order to get out of the quagmire of the war. The evil consequences of this move have initially appeared, but it is the Afghan people who have suffered the disaster.

Frequent attacks


The explosion in Kabul on the 8th occurred in a school. First, a car bomb was detonated, and then two improvised explosive devices buried near the school were detonated. Tariq Arian, a spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Interior, said on the 9th that the death toll may continue to rise. No organization or individual has claimed to have caused this attack.

At present, the overall security situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate, and various types of attacks have increased significantly. Before the United States and NATO troops withdrew, most of the attacks targeted government targets, mainly officials, military police, etc. After the beginning of the withdrawal, attacks on civilians and civilian facilities began to increase, and the death toll increased. In Kabul alone, there have been many similar attacks recently. For example, a gas tanker explosion at a gas station in the north of Kabul killed 9 people and injured at least 14 people on the evening of the 1st. Two high-voltage power towers in the northern part of the city were bombed in the early hours of the 8th, causing power outages in parts of Kabul. According to the US "New York Times" statistics, a total of 44 civilians were killed in the attack in Afghanistan from April 30 to May 6, the largest number of people in the week since October last year.

Zhu Yongbiao, director of the Afghanistan Research Center of Lanzhou University, pointed out that the withdrawal process of the United States and NATO has exacerbated the chaos in Afghanistan. Extreme terrorist forces have generally been stimulated and encouraged, and the attempts of various political forces to fish in troubled waters have also increased.

 The fighting is getting fiercer


At the same time, the Taliban have obviously stepped up their offensives against government forces on the battlefield recently. They have launched attacks on government forces in Ghazni, Wardak, Baghlan and Helmand provinces and occupied some of them. area. The Acting Minister of Defense Yassin Zia admitted on the 8th that the Taliban had stepped up their offensives in the past week and occupied some strategic locations in at least six provinces in Afghanistan. However, he said that the government forces repelled the Taliban’s offensive and regained it. These areas. He said that government forces killed and injured more than 1,000 Taliban militants in multiple provinces in the past week, but he did not provide the number of casualties of government forces.

The Taliban also claimed to have killed a large number of government soldiers recently, and claimed that hundreds of government soldiers had surrendered to the Taliban. At the same time, they denied the Taliban casualties announced by the Acting Minister of Defense.

Analysts pointed out that the United States had previously signed a peace agreement with the Taliban and promised to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. Although it was also stipulated that the Taliban and the Afghan government should conduct internal peace talks, they did not really resolve the contradictions between them. The U.S. withdrawal has caused a change in the balance of power between the two sides, leading to intensified conflicts.

 Afghan people suffer


Despite the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, the United States does not seem to be prepared to change its military withdrawal plan. US Secretary of Defense Austin stated at a press conference on the 6th that the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan is proceeding as planned. Zhu Yongbiao believes that despite the increase in various types of attacks and the intensification of fighting between government forces and the Taliban, current attacks and conflicts of this intensity will not affect the U.S. withdrawal.

US President Biden announced in April the goal of unconditionally withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan before September 11 this year. This decision has caused a lot of controversy and discussion in the United States. Some analysts pointed out that the decision is bound to trigger multiple risks such as further turbulence in the domestic situation in Afghanistan and the recovery of terrorism. Michael O'Hanlong, a senior foreign policy researcher at the Brookings Institution in the United States, bluntly said that withdrawing troops from Afghanistan is the worst foreign policy decision since Biden took office.

Afghan political analyst Nazari Pariani told Xinhua News Agency reporters that various types of militants, including terrorists, are still very active in Afghanistan, and that the United States is very irresponsible withdrawing troops under such circumstances. The Taliban’s intensified offensive against government forces and the attack on Kabul schools are actually the consequences of the irresponsible withdrawal of US troops.

According to Afghan Dawn TV, the recent fighting between government forces and the Taliban has caused a large number of residents to be displaced in Helmand Province. In Ghazni Province, local resident Abdul Manan said that fighting between the government and the Taliban has greatly escalated, and many families in the war zone have been besieged.

Pariani pointed out that the victims of the so-called US-led war on terrorism are the Afghan people, and they will face even more catastrophic conflicts in the near future. (Participating reporter: Liu Pinran)

 
The assertion about iran are correct as hardlime sunnis will naturally oppose shias. But it might not be true for china. If anything, we are seeing a relationship in development between taliban and china where Pakistan is playing a big role. I guess this article is just to stroke ego of americans and make the defeat look less painful.
 

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