Now, the twin realities that Afghanistan doesn't deserve as much attention as these people said we should devote to the place and that inasmuch as we have an "Afghanistan problem," the source of the problem is in Pakistan are making this plan look shaky.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff want to rein in the impulse for mission creep:
The Pentagon’s top military officers are recommending to President Barack Obama that he shift U.S. strategy in Afghanistan — to focus on ensuring regional stability and eliminating Taliban and Al Qaida safe havens in Pakistan, rather than on achieving lasting democracy and a thriving Afghan economy, officials said. The recommendations to narrow U.S. goals are contained in a classified report by the Joint Chiefs of Staff that is likely to be shown soon to Obama as part of a review of Afghanistan strategy announced by the new administration.
Got it? Don't try for too much in Afghanistan and much of that greater effort would be wasted since the Taliban have their stronghold in Pakistan.
As I've said, let's try to get Afghanistan into the 19th century. That is surely enough of a goal on the economic, social, and political front. And either help Pakistan pacify the unruly frontier safe havens for jihadis or work the problem ourselves.
The troops are on track to flow in. We'd best settle on what we want them to do.
Oh, and make sure we can supply them:
Islamist militants blew up a bridge in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday, cutting a major supply line for Western troops in Afghanistan, a government official and a NATO spokesman said.
The attack highlights the urgent need NATO and the U.S. have for alternative supply routes to landlocked Afghanistan through nations to its north, an already vital task given American plans to double its troop numbers in the country.
That really isn't a settled question as far as I'm concerned. And our Plan B going north isn't as secure as I'd like:
Kyrgyzstan's president said Tuesday his country is ending U.S. use of an air base key to military operations in Afghanistan_ a decision with potentially grave consequences for U.S. efforts to put down surging Taliban and al-Qaida violence.
A U.S. military official in Afghanistan called President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's statement "political positioning" and denied the U.S. presence at the Manas air base would end anytime soon.
I'm guessing this is just a little jab at us prompted by the Russians. That's right, the Russians can apply pressure on our alternate supply route.
We really need to have a Plan C in case we have to fight our way out of Afghanistan. Or even better, get a supply line that would bypass both the unstable southern and northern routes.
