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Afghanistan

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    #21
    Mind you, it would be a blindingly brilliant tactic for the Yanks to have pretended to withdraw, so the weasel Taliban would all come out into the open, and then for the Yanks to quickly steam back in, block the borders, and clobber them!

    I must concede though, it's vanishingly unlikely.
    Work in the public sector? Read the IR35 FAQ here

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      #22
      I was wondering just how large the Taliban forces are. It's one thing to take over a town but it's another to hold it and if you're moving a proportion of your forces ever onwards to the next town then at some point you're going to be spread too thin.

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        #23
        Trump got very matey with India, saw them as a big part in holding back China. I'm guessing they both though this would be a great idea.

        Maybe Trump would have changed plan by this point, who knows, but certainly Biden isn't really bothered about the carnage that is going to start when they get to Kabul.

        He won't get a lot of criticism, he's too well protected by the media. And people banging on about illegal wars for 20 years can't turn around and demand they stay and start carpet bombing again.

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          #24
          Originally posted by ladymuck View Post
          I was wondering just how large the Taliban forces are. It's one thing to take over a town but it's another to hold it and if you're moving a proportion of your forces ever onwards to the next town then at some point you're going to be spread too thin.
          They just hire people as they expand, everyone is armed, and they pay more than anyone else so most are up for it.

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            #25
            Originally posted by OwlHoot View Post
            Mind you, it would be a blindingly brilliant tactic for the Yanks to have pretended to withdraw, so the weasel Taliban would all come out into the open, and then for the Yanks to quickly steam back in, block the borders, and clobber them!

            I must concede though, it's vanishingly unlikely.
            it is the sort of the thing the Israelis might do so we can but hope!
            Last edited by vetran; 13 August 2021, 19:47.
            Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.

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              #26
              Originally posted by ladymuck View Post
              I was wondering just how large the Taliban forces are. It's one thing to take over a town but it's another to hold it and if you're moving a proportion of your forces ever onwards to the next town then at some point you're going to be spread too thin.
              They may be small in numbers but their tactics is being orchestrated by Pakistan, in addition to replenishing numbers through Pak madrasas.

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                #27
                Originally posted by ladymuck View Post
                I was wondering just how large the Taliban forces are. It's one thing to take over a town but it's another to hold it and if you're moving a proportion of your forces ever onwards to the next town then at some point you're going to be spread too thin.
                The snag is it's presumably not a zero-sum game, with the Taliban spread ever thinner, because enough wavering government troops and sympathisers will switch sides and commit themselves to join them each step of the way to bolster the forces left behind the front line.
                Work in the public sector? Read the IR35 FAQ here

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                  #28
                  Originally posted by ladymuck View Post
                  Didn't Trump start the withdrawal, or some such? Yes Biden could have reversed it, I guess that depends on what information he was given.
                  Trump did idiotic "deal", mostly I think to create poison pill for Biden, but it was Biden who went through with it, so he owns it 100%, he most likely does not give a flying fook though.

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                    #29
                    Originally posted by ladymuck View Post
                    I was wondering just how large the Taliban forces are. It's one thing to take over a town but it's another to hold it and if you're moving a proportion of your forces ever onwards to the next town then at some point you're going to be spread too thin.
                    I don't know... quick google search shows afghanistan forces are way larger (3-4 size) than taliban forces and obviously way better equipped... but the thing is that you have huge hordes of militants coming over from pakistan and I don't think that's actually included in those numbers when you google it. Majority of the invading force came over from Pakistan and are supported financially by Pakistan.

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                      #30
                      Originally posted by AtW View Post

                      Trump did idiotic "deal", mostly I think to create poison pill for Biden, but it was Biden who went through with it, so he owns it 100%, he most likely does not give a flying fook though.
                      Trump's withdrawal was structured with requirements and caveats which this admin ignored. c.f. The Iran Deal. The Orange Man had his faults but his foreign policy here was one of his stronger points. Well, it's all a bit academic now - it's broken.

                      “Joe Biden has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades." - Robert Gates, Obama Defense Secretary
                      Last edited by TwoWolves; 14 August 2021, 00:18.

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