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March 9, 2009

Analysts: 'Obama's call on moderate Taliban useless'

Topics: Afghanistan, Political News and commentaries

Among the comments from the analysts, my favorite and the one I believe to be the most appropriate, is "'Moderate Taliban' is like 'moderate killer'. Is there such a thing?"::

KABUL, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's proposal to reach out to moderate Taliban will fail to end the Afghan insurgency as it is inflexible Taliban leaders who are orchestrating the war, not moderates, analysts said.

Obama, in an interview with the New York Times newspaper published on its website on Saturday, expressed an openness to adapting tactics in Afghanistan that had been used in Iraq to reach out to moderate elements there.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai welcomed Obama's proposal but analysts were doubtful.

"Obama's comment resemble a dream more than reality," said Waheed Mozhdah, an analyst who has written a book on the Taliban.

"Where are the so-called moderate Tal iban? Who are the moderate Taliban?" asked Mozhdah, who was an official in both the Taliban and the Karzai governments.

Karzai's pro-Western administration and the growing number of foreign forces in Afghanistan have increasingly come under attack from a resurgent Taliban, with Obama now describing Afghanistan as a top foreign policy priority for his new administration.

"'Moderate Taliban' is like 'moderate killer'. Is there such a thing?", asked writer and analyst Qaseem Akhgar.

[..] In Iraq, the use of Sunni Muslim community leaders to employ their people to patrol their neighbourhoods has been credited as one of the main reasons behind sharp falls in violence.

... Ahmad Saeedi, a former diplomat and analyst, said the tactic would not succeed in Afghanistan where arming militias would only become another headache for Kabul and the West.

Obama's call for reaching to moderate elements was aimed at appeasing European countries increasingly disillusioned with what looks like a war without end, ahead of a planned trip there, said Saeedi.

Obama's initial position is one of weakness, and as Ashraf Ghani, a former Afghan finance minister who plans to run for president in August, has said, "I don't know of a single peace process that has been successfully negotiated from a position of weakness or stalemate." While leaving the door open for discussions with our enemies, trying to negotiate from a position of weakness has never resulted in a successful outcome and never will.

Yes, as one of the above analysts notes, "Obama's comment does indeed "resemble a dream more than reality." But the liberal-progressive window through which Obama and his fellow Democrats view the world prevents him from seeing the truth and the error of his views.

Other coverage with a somewhat different view: Obama seeks accommodation with the Taliban?

Posted by Hyscience at March 9, 2009 11:26 AM

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• Analysts: 'Obama's call on moderate Taliban useless' - Mar 09, 2009