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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: one_less who wrote (166370)	7/18/2005 7:40:10 AM
From: jttmab	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Our intentions were good....what started out to be a liberating success... "Liberation" had nothing to do with it. Our intentions were to use Afghans as cannon fodder to take revenge on the Soviets for the US loss in Vietnam. 1.5 million dead Afghanis were inconsequential for the pleasure of that revenge. However, we left a leadership and power vacuum. Not really. Pakistan took the lead and from the Mujahideen leaders set up the government of Afghanistan. Our lack of interest in Afghanistan was temporary. "..It was only after it [Afghanistan] become the world largest producer and supplier of illicit drugs did Afghanistan got the West's attention again. By now the huge oil reserves in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan were also discovered and Afghanistan seemed the only economical and sensible route through which that oil can be pumped to the West. There therefore was a need for an end to the infighting in Afghanistan. Pakistan now the master of all activities in Afghanistan could do that and again for the right price. As a result they got stakes in the US sponsored multi-billion oil pipeline from central Asia through Afghanistan and perhaps some other economic help. Pakistan in return unleashed on Afghanistan its trained "Taliban" - students from Religious schools..." institute-for-afghan-studies.org jttmab

To: one_less who wrote (166370)	7/18/2005 9:25:00 AM
From: Sun Tzu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

If we cared so much for Afghans, how come we did not even ask them to be present in the discussions on Soviet withdraw? How come we did not allow them to negotiate the terms of compensation for the soviet destructions? How come we did not support Ahmed Shah Masood who was the best general the Afghans had and instead cozied up to the Saudi supported extremists? It was just about settling score with Russians and once they were out so were we. The facts do not bear your romantic outlook of US actions in Afghanistan.