The Problem Is Not Withdrawal, but Drones!

U.S. President Joe Biden said in his speech before a joint session of Congress 100 days after his inauguration, “Today we have service members serving in the same war as their parents once did. We have service members in Afghanistan who were not yet born on 9/11.”

This means that the Afghan war has lasted through a generation. Biden assured he will keep the promise made 15 days ago to withdraw the U.S. armed forces from Afghanistan on Sept. 11 of this year, the 20-year anniversary of 9/11. Osama bin Laden, who was responsible for the 9/11 terror attack, was executed 10 years ago, but the Afghan war has lasted for 20 years.

Does the withdrawal of the U.S. armed forces indeed mark the end of the Afghan war? They say that a politician’s promise to end a war is usually a lie. The same goes for Biden’s promise. Even if U.S. armed forces withdraw, the U.S. may not be completely through with the war. There are two main reasons. First, a war can be conducted via surrogates; contracted mercenaries will replace American soldiers. Second, the war using drones will continue.

There is an inextricable link between the U.S. drone war and the president. The president could even be called “the assassination commander,” as the president is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Former President George W. Bush started the drone war, but Barack Obama used drones 10 times more often than Bush did. The drones Donald Trump used in his four-year term exceeded the number used in the Obama administration’s eight years. It shows that drones are becoming the core line of effort of the war on terror. Other points in their favor: drones are cheaper than deploying troops and can reduce U.S. troop casualties. Of course, there are critical problems; drones can cause civilian casualties, and radar cannot fully cover drones’ activities. The U.S. could be caught in a vicious circle in which it must develop a system to cover drones, the drone to fight back other drones, and finally, AI drones.

The U.S. Ground Operation Control Center, located at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, 10,000 km away from the war zone, carries out the drone war. Drone pilots strike targets remotely maneuvering drones deployed to Navy aircraft carriers or Air Force bases in the Middle East or the Gulf. Even though the pilots set their targets through endless analysis, they experience tremendous difficulties.

“The thing about … dropping bombs from 35,000 feet is that you don’t see anybody, human beings, you don’t hear screams, see blood, see mangled bodies. I understand very well how atrocities are committed in modern warfare, from a distance. So there I was doing these things,” confesses Howard Zinn. Zinn is a political scientist and historian who participated in bombing missions during World War II. He sailed into Royan, a seaside resort in southwest France, three weeks prior to the German Nazi defeat. There were tens of thousands of isolated German soldiers who were waiting for the war’s end. Later on, Zinn found out that 1,200 bombers deployed to the mission and more than 1,000 civilians died. The bombardier did not witness the horror that happened on the ground at that time. Therefore, the pilot could push the button for dropping bombs without any guilty feeling about other people’s lives. A drone pilot, unlike a bombardier, must watch the horror through the monitor. However, he has no choice but to push the button.

In early March 2021, The New York Times reported that Biden issued a temporary order that the White House should grant permission to use drones against terrorists outside war zones. This means Biden is determined to review Trump’s drone policy. The White House said all drone attacks were stopped attacks when Biden took office. Although this implies that drone attacks can be continued in Afghanistan, it must be one of Biden’s “peace steps,” implemented since Biden took power. In February 2021, Biden announced the U.S. would stop supporting the war in Yemen, which is led by Saudi Arabia. Also, in March, he said he would consult with Congress on a plan to abolish and replace the President’s Authorization for Use of Military Force, which is the blank check of “endless war.”

We do not know whether Biden is going to end the drone war. Zinn said, “The assertion that they fight for democracy and peace, to defend against invasion, or to end all types of wars, is only simple expediency to support war.”* Biden’s best merit is his 44-year public service experience as a senator and vice president. This means Biden has the ability to solve any issue regarding the U.S. better than anyone else. At the same time, Biden cannot wash his hands easily as he is deeply involved in the American system. In order to keep the promise of “America’s comeback,” Biden must make dramatic changes to his drone policy. Putting an end to war does not only mean sending soldiers home. War is like infrastructure in that huge amounts of taxpayer dollars are invested in it. Therefore, the U.S. must reduce its national defense budget. If not, the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and review of the drone policy turn out to be empty promises.

*Editor’s Note: Although accurately translated, this quotation could not be verified.