No Applause in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s politicians are underwhelmed by President Obama’s plans to increase troop strength in their country. Many think his strategy is unrealistic.

President Obama’s new Afghanistan strategy has unleashed no euphoria in the Hindu Kush. Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Sahir Fakiri reacted to Obama’s address with a dry observation: “The Afghan Foreign Ministry welcomes the new strategy.” Obama had just completed an hour-long videoconference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, but the Afghan government’s statement didn’t provide any more information than Obama’s speech.

“More troops means more targets for the Taliban, and since these troops are there to fight that will certainly mean more civilian victims,” said Ahmad Shah Ahmadzai, who served as prime minister of Afghanistan from 1995-1996. “Civilian victims will greatly damage America’s image and cause more outrage among the Afghan people,” he told Reuters News Bureau. Critics of the troop surge point to the fact that the addition of 21,000 U.S. troops in early summer did nothing to improve security in the country and that the number of civilian victims had risen.

Parliamentary member Shukria Barakzai said she expects no improvements for the civilian population. “It was a nice speech for America, but regarding strategy for Afghanistan, there was unfortunately nothing new,” she said, adding that Obama’s understanding of Afghanistan was far from reality. “His strategy contained only lip-service and wasn’t aimed at the civilian population, national renewal, democracy or human rights.” Prior to Obama’s speech, she advised that instead of sending 30,000 more soldiers, Obama should send 30,000 engineers and scientists.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmoud Saikal said that Obama’s troop surge raises many questions, commenting it would take years, not months, to create a working government and asking, “What happens if the situation in July 2011 is worse than it is today? Will the United States still go ahead with withdrawal plans?” Afghan presidential advisor Sebghatullah Sanjar reacted similarly, saying, “We haven’t been able to solve the Afghanistan problem in eight years and now the United States wants to solve it in 18 months? I don’t see how that’s possible.” He also considers the setting of a deadline for withdrawal to be wrong because it constitutes a clear signal to the Taliban that they only have to hold out for that length of time.

The Taliban itself announced that more U.S. troops would bring about more resistance, saying that Obama’s strategy wouldn’t work. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahamdi told the AFP news agency, “Obama will witness lots of coffins heading to America from Afghanistan.” He also prophesied a humiliating retreat for the international forces.