US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

Society Pakistan & World Affairs
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*it could be true as the violence has gone down dramatically during the past four months, especially this month there are only 8 casualties up till now…

http://www.dawn.com/2011/12/14/us-winning-conflict-in-afghanistan-panetta.html*
US winning conflict in Afghanistan: Panetta**

**FOB SHARANA: US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta on Wednesday told troops during a visit to Afghanistan that the US-led coalition was winning the 10-year conflict in the war-torn country.

**“We’re moving in the right direction and we’re winning this very tough conflict,” he told troops based in Paktika province, which shares a long, porous border with Pakistan’s tribal belt troubled by Taliban militancy.

“Are there challenges out there? You’re damn right, there are challenges.

Are we gonna be able to take on those challenges? You’re damn right we will.

“Ultimately here in Afghanistan, we will able to establish a country that is able to govern and secure itself, we will make sure that the Taliban will never be able to find safe haven here, that al-Qaeda will never again be able to find safe havens here.”

Panetta made the comments as he met US troops from 172 Infantry Brigade stationed at Forward Operating Base Sharana, just over 50 kilometres (35 miles) from the Pakistan border.His two-day visit to the country comes with the United States on track to withdraw 10,000 troops this year and Nato soldiers handing security to Afghan forces before the planned exit of all Nato combat troops in 2014.

Panetta said 2014 would not mean the end of international support in Afghanistan.

“We will not simply pick up and get out. We spilled too much blood here,” he said.

His visit comes with America’s Pakistan alliance in crisis over Nato strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers near the Afghan border on November 26.

Pakistan responded by shutting the US supply line into landlocked Afghanistan, saying the blockade could last weeks longer, and forcing Americans to leave an air base widely reported to have been a hub for CIA drones.

Panetta said it was important to make sure Pakistan could secure their side of the border.

“It’s difficult, it’s complex, but at the same time it’s important to maintain a relationship with Pakistan,” he said.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

According to icasualties.org these are the figures for the past three years. During the past three years (Oct-Dec) the deaths of coalition soldiers have been 141, 164 and 77 (half of December is left but still a significant drop in casualties)

[http://icasualties.org/OEF/index.aspx

[TABLE=“class: Smalltable, width: 1”]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2001
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
5
4
12
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2002
10
13
15
10
1
3
0
3
1
5
1
8
70
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2003
4
7
12
2
3
7
2
4
2
6
8
1
58
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2004
11
2
3
3
9
5
2
4
4
8
7
2
60
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2005
2
3
6
19
4
29
2
33
12
10
7
4
131
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2006
1
17
13
5
17
22
19
29
38
17
9
4
191
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2007
2
18
10
20
25
24
29
34
24
15
22
9
232
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2008
14
7
20
14
23
46
30
46
37
19
12
27
295
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2009
25
25
28
14
27
38
76
77
70
74
32
35
521
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2010
43
53
39
34
51
103
88
79
57
65
58
41
711
[/TR]
[TR=“bgcolor: white”]
2011
32
38
39
51
56
66
53
82
53
42
27
8
547
[/TR]](http://icasualties.org/OEF/index.aspx)

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

LMAO! Ah ISAF you guys make Goebbels proud!

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

plz US win fast, win all you can, if you call it winning : D

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

US was also winning in noko and nam, just dig out the archives...

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

As per the table above, the total death toll of allies is around 3,000 in ten years, considering they are at war, this is nothing, then why all the fuss?

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

Deaths are nothing I agree but they want to be in full control of Afghanistan, which they are not. Afghanistan is a very important country strategically and lots of minerals (gold, copper etc) worth trillions of dollars have been discovered recently, most of the worlds oil/gas pipelines, transit trade would be carried out through Afghanistan.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

its precedence to withdraw from afghanistan. All of a sudden they now are winning.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

mods plz move this thread to humor forum.
Thank you

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

^lolz. i agree. US has miserably FAILED in afghanistan and lost credibility. The fact is that US needs our support to ensure that there won't be Taliban returning back to afghanistan after they leave. I am with IK when he says this is not our war. And especially after killing 24 of our soldiers i think we should boycott their war.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

True that :omg:

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

really? they destroyed al qaeda. they threw taleban govt out. and they got osama bin laden.

they did all this IN SPITE of Pakistan ISI helping and shielding the terrorists by flying them out the harm's way and housing people of obl in their military town!

They have done pretty good. The only mistake USA made was trusting their so called front-line state ally in the war on terror

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

I remember a long time ago...

The US establishment claimed victory in Vietnam, and at the time it certainly appeared like the US had won. Then along came the second generation of Vietcong who regrouped and launched thier "Tet Offensive" while strategically it was not quite a total victory for the Vietcong, the fact that in its innitial stages they overan 80% of US forces and struck the heart of Saigon was enough to turn public opinion against the war.

In Afghanistan I can see the same scenario coming forth, the Taliban are regrouping. and they are regrouping very fast. They control most of the country and seem to be concentrating thier forces. The Taliban's staple income source, heroin is back on the market in bigger amounts. Soon they will have the funds and force to hit back in the coming spring.

Unless ISAF come out with a better idea soon or the Taliban are hit by a plague I cant see this situation changing. Steadily the war is becoming bogged down and the stalemate is slowly tipping towards the favour of the Taliban. I would not be happy if they took power again... but regretably even the Americans are engaging in dialouge with them so it looks like they are here to stay. Cant say the same for the ISAF forces though... day by day they are losing men, losing money and losing time. Looks like a lost cause if you ask me. Maybe its time to pull out.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

Nothing beats an indian when it comes time to "talk" about Pakistan.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

They might be winning at present (considering the numbers of casualties have gone down), but if Pakistan keeps a check on the supply of pampers for a couple of weeks the situation might change. ;)

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

ISAF causalities are by no means the standard to see if they are winning. The standard is how much territory they control and maintain a control over. That is the basic standard of war. In that case they are doing poorly and ANSF is doing even worse.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

US, Taliban talks reach turning point

U.S. officials have met with Tayeb Agha, who was a secretary to Mullah Omar, and they have held one meeting arranged by Pakistan with Ibrahim Haqqani, a brother of the Haqqani network’s founder. They have not shut the door to further meetings with the Haqqani group, which is blamed for a brazen attack this fall on the U.S. embassy in Kabul.
http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/International/19-Dec-2011/US-Taliban-talks-reach-turning-point

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

I saw that in the dawn and I find that retarded. One day they are enemy number 1 and allied with Al Qaeda and now they are having peace talks. No peace with any Taliban.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

There are news that the Americans have had an office of Taleban opened in Qatar (without even consulting the Afghans), who want their office in Afghanistan and if thats not possible in Turkey or Saudia.

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Re: US winning in Afghanistan - Panetta

I am always surprised by this statement that if Heroin is Taliban's Staple income then why, i mean seriously WHY they eradicated it in their government.?? didnt they need money to run government, I think they could and should have converted the whole Afghanistan into a heroin cultivation land and made big dollars and brought lot or prosperity..

Really strange to see that education make us more crazy and stupid and we cant even add 2 + 2 properly.