KABUL, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- In order to overcome the threat of terrorism and maintain peace and stability in Afghanistan and in the region, regional cooperation is needed, an Afghan analyst maintained.
"In order to eradicate terrorism in Afghanistan and from this part of the world, we need regional cooperation and so terrorism is not a threat to Afghanistan alone, rather it threats the entire region and the whole world," Haroun Mir, who heads a Kabul-based think tank -- Afghanistan's Center for Research & Policy Studies, told Xinhua in a recent interview here in Afghan capital Kabul.
Mir attached the regional stability to durable security in Afghanistan, saying that a stable Afghanistan would benefit the region and boost economic and trade activities in the whole region.
"If we have a regional cooperation in the war against terrorism, I am pretty convinced that we could overcome this challenge and would be able to defeat terrorists," he said.
"And this requires the cooperation of Pakistan, Iran, China, India, Russia and central Asian countries as well as countries from the Persian Gulf, because lots of financial support for Taliban and other terrorist networks come from very wealthy Gulf countries, and we need cooperation at the regional level and even at the global level," the analyst stressed.
The war in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, under the U.S.- led coalition which included British, several other countries and the then Afghan United Front or Northern Alliance, dubbed " Operation Enduring Freedom" with the stated goal of dismantling the Taliban and al-Qaida terrorist organization based in Afghanistan. The United States also said that it would remove the Taliban regime from power and create a viable democratic government.
Anti-Taliban leader and commander of Northern Alliance Ahmad Shah Massoud was assassinated in a suicide attack by some Arabs pretending to be journalists on September 9, 2001, and two days later the September 11 attacks on the United States happened.
"I think the United States, after a decade of commitment in Afghanistan, has reached the conclusion that the counter- insurgency strategy has not worked in Afghanistan," Mir said.
Mir noted that U.S. President Barack Obama now decided to drawdown American forces after his decision in late 2009 to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
"And now the United States is devising a new counter-terrorism strategy in Afghanistan which would require few American forces and they are trying to invest on the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)," he said.
This is the reason why the U.S. and NATO officials are focusing more on the transfer of security to the ANSF by the end of 2014, he added.
Asked whether the current strategy on terror works, he replied, "I think no, the Americans have not been able to defeat the Taliban, because just by killing rank and file Taliban militants it is not enough to defeat them, because the Taliban leadership still possibly enjoys safe havens in Pakistan and Afghanistan- Pakistan border areas," said Mir.
And this is the reason why the Americans have not been able to defeat the Taliban because they started this war with the cooperation of wrong ally, executing a double standard policy which on the one hand sides the U.S. in the war on terror and on the other shelters the Taliban and associate insurgents.
"The situation is also getting worse day by day. We witness another serious attack in Kabul. The Taliban have been able to increase their terrorist attacks in Kabul and other big cities," he said.
He said that despite U.S. military surge in Afghanistan the Taliban have been able to expand their territory and start insurgency in the relatively peaceful northern provinces of Afghanistan.
This year particularly by going after government officials and senior political leaders, the Taliban have assassinated several ranking officials, he added.
The political assassination in Afghanistan is also having a very negative impact on the war against terrorism -- for example the assassination of President Karzai's brother and other important political figures in Afghanistan has certainly undermine stability, Mir believed.
They are trying to weaken the government and their objective is to not allow a smooth transfer of security responsibility from NATO-led forces to the ANSF - and to undermine the Afghan institutions and ultimately the Afghan state, he said.
Commenting on U.S. forces drawdown begun in mid-July this year, Mir said, "The drawdown of American forces will empower the Taliban. It will bolster the Taliban position and I think the Taliban now are convinced that they are not defeated but have been able to resist a mighty force such as the American and NATO forces."
"In order to eradicate terrorism in Afghanistan and from this part of the world, we need regional cooperation and so terrorism is not a threat to Afghanistan alone, rather it threats the entire region and the whole world," Haroun Mir, who heads a Kabul-based think tank -- Afghanistan's Center for Research & Policy Studies, told Xinhua in a recent interview here in Afghan capital Kabul.
Mir attached the regional stability to durable security in Afghanistan, saying that a stable Afghanistan would benefit the region and boost economic and trade activities in the whole region.
"If we have a regional cooperation in the war against terrorism, I am pretty convinced that we could overcome this challenge and would be able to defeat terrorists," he said.
"And this requires the cooperation of Pakistan, Iran, China, India, Russia and central Asian countries as well as countries from the Persian Gulf, because lots of financial support for Taliban and other terrorist networks come from very wealthy Gulf countries, and we need cooperation at the regional level and even at the global level," the analyst stressed.
The war in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, under the U.S.- led coalition which included British, several other countries and the then Afghan United Front or Northern Alliance, dubbed " Operation Enduring Freedom" with the stated goal of dismantling the Taliban and al-Qaida terrorist organization based in Afghanistan. The United States also said that it would remove the Taliban regime from power and create a viable democratic government.
Anti-Taliban leader and commander of Northern Alliance Ahmad Shah Massoud was assassinated in a suicide attack by some Arabs pretending to be journalists on September 9, 2001, and two days later the September 11 attacks on the United States happened.
"I think the United States, after a decade of commitment in Afghanistan, has reached the conclusion that the counter- insurgency strategy has not worked in Afghanistan," Mir said.
Mir noted that U.S. President Barack Obama now decided to drawdown American forces after his decision in late 2009 to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
"And now the United States is devising a new counter-terrorism strategy in Afghanistan which would require few American forces and they are trying to invest on the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF)," he said.
This is the reason why the U.S. and NATO officials are focusing more on the transfer of security to the ANSF by the end of 2014, he added.
Asked whether the current strategy on terror works, he replied, "I think no, the Americans have not been able to defeat the Taliban, because just by killing rank and file Taliban militants it is not enough to defeat them, because the Taliban leadership still possibly enjoys safe havens in Pakistan and Afghanistan- Pakistan border areas," said Mir.
And this is the reason why the Americans have not been able to defeat the Taliban because they started this war with the cooperation of wrong ally, executing a double standard policy which on the one hand sides the U.S. in the war on terror and on the other shelters the Taliban and associate insurgents.
"The situation is also getting worse day by day. We witness another serious attack in Kabul. The Taliban have been able to increase their terrorist attacks in Kabul and other big cities," he said.
He said that despite U.S. military surge in Afghanistan the Taliban have been able to expand their territory and start insurgency in the relatively peaceful northern provinces of Afghanistan.
This year particularly by going after government officials and senior political leaders, the Taliban have assassinated several ranking officials, he added.
The political assassination in Afghanistan is also having a very negative impact on the war against terrorism -- for example the assassination of President Karzai's brother and other important political figures in Afghanistan has certainly undermine stability, Mir believed.
They are trying to weaken the government and their objective is to not allow a smooth transfer of security responsibility from NATO-led forces to the ANSF - and to undermine the Afghan institutions and ultimately the Afghan state, he said.
Commenting on U.S. forces drawdown begun in mid-July this year, Mir said, "The drawdown of American forces will empower the Taliban. It will bolster the Taliban position and I think the Taliban now are convinced that they are not defeated but have been able to resist a mighty force such as the American and NATO forces."
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