In Afghanistan, Alarm and a Sense of Betrayal Over U.S. Drawdown
"Trump Leaves Behind Mess for Afghans to Clean Up "
It's not so much Trump's decision to withdraw another 7000 troops from Afghanistan which is most bothersome to some, but the way in which the decision was made, the timing of it, and the manner in which it was announced.
American Marines in the southern Afghan province of Helmand last year. Officials said on Thursday that half of the 14,000 United States troops in the country would be withdrawn. Andrew Renneisen/Getty Images
“Conditions on the ground — not arbitrary timetables — will guide our strategy from now on,” Mr. Trump said at the time. “America’s enemies must never know our plans or believe they can wait us out.”
On Friday, that suspicion seemed to be confirmed, as Afghan officials and Western diplomats woke to the unexpected news that Mr. Trump had ordered half of the 14,000 American troops .. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/20/us/politics/afghanistan-troop-withdrawal.html?module=inline .. in Afghanistan home, even as the war continues to rage and the Taliban threaten much of the country.
For many in the Afghan leadership, shock quickly turned to a sense of betrayal.
Most officials and diplomats said they would only speak on condition of anonymity because they were still assessing the situation. But many were less concerned about the reduction in troop numbers — though struggling Afghan forces still need hands-on help — than by the way news of it emerged, which they said appeared to undermine not only the Afghan government, but also some of the most senior American officials working for a peace deal.
IMAGE - US troops in Afghanistan
Afghan officials said they had not been consulted or even warned about the drawdown. And the timing was likely to complicate the American push for peace talks with the Taliban, which requires maintaining pressure, or at least holding the line, on the battlefield.
Just this week, senior American diplomats had conducted two days of extensive talks with representatives of the insurgency, with the future of the United States military presence among the topics discussed. And hours before the troop pulldown became public knowledge, Zalmay Khalilzad, the most senior American diplomat involved in the talks, said he had made it clear to the Taliban that the American commitment was firm.
Under the right circumstances, an American troop reduction could be a boon to peace talks — a demonstration to the Taliban that the United States is willing to do what is necessary to reach a deal.
“It’s clear that a rapid pullout of all international forces could spark the collapse of the Afghan government and start a new civil war,” said Graeme Smith, a consultant with the International Crisis Group and a longtime observer of Afghanistan. “Still, this partial withdrawal could send a useful message to all sides. This signals to the Taliban that the U.S. is serious about negotiating an exit.”
But the surprise nature of the move, coming before the Taliban had indicated any willingness to hold formal talks with Afghan officials or agree to a cease-fire, suggested it was unlikely to have been coordinated with the recent peace moves, and that it could in fact undermine the negotiators.
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