Karzai Wants NATO Troops Out of Afghan Villages

Scott Olson, Getty Images

President Hamid Karzai demanded that NATO Troops confine themselves to major bases by next year, thus removing them from the rural villages of Afghanistan in his discussions with Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Karzai also called for Afghan troops to take responsibility for the country's security in 2013, a year ahead of the planned exit strategy, saying, "Afghan security forces have the ability to keep the security in rural areas and in villages on their own."

Anger against the United States mounted in Afghanistan after the U.S. flew the soldier suspected in killing 16 Afghan civilians to Kuwait Wednesday night instead of keeping him in the country. Karzai listened to Afghan lawmakers express their outrage about the situation and decided to accelerate the withdrawal of NATO troops in response.

Defense officials admitted that Mr. Karzai’s declaration sharply contrasts with American goals of training the Afghan security forces and conducting counterinsurgency operations  Adding to the bad news, the Taliban announced that it was suspending talks with the United States.

This news does not bode well for the likelihood of success for the exit strategy currently in place. As frequent readers know, Ham on Wry believes that U.S. military forces should leave the country as fast as possible. Many members of our armed forces have served several tours of duty in either Iraq or Afghanistan or both, a fact that contributes to high levels of stress, battle fatigue, and a host of psychological problems.

Ham on Wry completely understands that the purpose of staying until 2014 is an attempt to ensure the Taliban will not regain control of the country. If the people of Afghanistan don't want Taliban rule, they must find a way to stop it from occurring and establish the kind of government they do want. No amount of force can make that happen unless Afghan citizens support the outcome. It's time to rethink our strategy, despite President Obama's and Prime Minister Cameron's combined statement Wednesday. Enough troops have lost their lives or suffered traumatic injuries already.