آرشیف

A panoramic view of the situation in Afghanistan based on the farsighted political commentators, analysts, scholars, and pundits seem ambiguous. The rapid development of the situation is startling and unpredictable. As numerous internal and external players have been somehow, directly, and indirectly, involved in shaping and influencing the current political landscape in Afghanistan and the whole region. Some of the regional and neighbouring nations like Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan is genuinely in favour of peace in Afghanistan for their national security, economic prosperity, and trade enhancements.

On the contrary, some other countries involved seek their interest in the continuation of war for justification of their presence in Afghanistan for acquiring their economic, political, and strategic objectives. The US occupiers and its NATO allies for two decades have been using war and peace as a pretext and hypnotising words to fight against terrorism, defending their national interests and global security. Consequently, hitherto they have converted our homeland to a playground for the realisation of their greedy economic, political, and widespread games. During the two decades of their potential military and intelligence presence in Afghanistan, the situation is becoming more complex dangerous and ambiguous with each passing day. Undoubtedly, this status quo has been deliberately engineered, i.e., not being accidental, as described by many analysts and political observers.

The United States has actively been formulating progressively for four decades to attain its sinister goals apparently under the pretext of preventing terrorism but in fact for achieving its long-term strategic interest in the region. Therefore, the occupiers have been striving to undermine the influence of other regional powers such as China, India, Iran, and Russia. Undoubtedly, the motive for the US military operation in Afghanistan should not be merely concluded in the war on terrorism, but rather in its geopolitical, geostrategic and geoeconomics interest in Afghanistan and in the region. Hence all those inducements, prompted US direct intervention in the region after the end of the Cold War as are rightly raised by many analysts.

During this period, in the wake of the expansion of the terrorist forces, the occupying powers have been perpetually engaged to secure their economic interests through plunging Afghanistan into a continuous chaotic and devastating condition for over half a century. Currently, Afghanistan is being used as a playground by the regional powers in which its people are sidelined to decide upon their destiny. Accordingly, the ongoing worsening situation in Afghanistan is being engineered by the occupiers which have inflicted irreparable damage to the people and country. Consequently, Afghanistan is today suffering from gradual devastation which its dreadful impacts are being made multi-faceted and multi-dimensional. That deplorable effects of controlled violence seem to be protracted for an indefinite period in various ways.

The occupiers of our country under the pretext of fighting terrorism, the source of which has yet been Pakistan, the close strategic alliance of the USA and its allies. The presence of the United States for two decades in Afghanistan, in the name of self-imposed terrorism, has severely hurt the people’s life including their cultural and moral values, their social fabrics and national unity, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Widespread poverty and starvation ٫ three million drug addicts, the most corrupt and incompetent government in the world and insecurity is the outcome of US presence in Afghanistan.

Reports from various sources indicate that the United States is sending a group of special forces equipped with advanced weapons to Afghanistan under the pretext of securing its troops as they leave Afghanistan. This small group will be more effective to ensure the security of underground mineral sites which are being looted. The deployment of US troops is already planned, indicating that a secret agreement has reached with the Taliban to secure the US secret bases in Afghanistan. The United States is bringing the Taliban to power, but in return is urging them to secure their troops against the ISIL terrorists as they will be stationed in their secret military bases. According to Sputnik, Reuters recently wrote: ” In line with one of the secret annexes to the Doha agreement between the United States and the Taliban, Taliban fighters have protected foreign military bases in Afghanistan from attacks by other groups for more than a year. They have during this period prevented other extremist or rival groups from attacking foreign troops in Afghanistan. Therefore, no foreign troops stationed in Afghanistan had been killed since the signing of the US-Taliban peace agreement. But in the past year, Taliban killed and injured hundreds of Afghan civilians and troops.

The unexpected US announcement of an unconditional withdrawal left many security questions unanswered — such as what happens to NATO’s surveillance equipment and the giant blimp that hovers over the capital. The blimp provides real-time intelligence and 24-hour surveillance, said a western diplomat in Afghanistan.

Associated press writes, “David Barrett, a professor at Villanova University who specializes in the history of intelligence policy said, US can still monitor electronic communications and other signals with its advanced technology and could intervene militarily if it assessed a threat to an American target. We have amazing capabilities for knowing what is happening on the ground. If anyone, anywhere in Afghanistan decides they want to develop any ability to strike the US, they would be making a big mistake.”

But the main question is that how the Taliban are committing heinous crimes against the Afghan people around the country. The Afghan people are murdered every day, but it is being ignored by the occupiers cold- bloodedly with silence. The CIA had been training and running Afghan special forces known as Counter Terrorism Pursuit Teams, or CTPT. The teams are in the provinces of Kunar, Paktia, Kandahar, Kabul, Khost and Nangarhar. The plan is to gradually hand them over to the Afghan National Directorate of Security. So far, the Kunar and Paktia units have been transferred to Afghan control, he said.

CIA Director William Burns made a recent unannounced visit to Kabul, a senior politician and a well-placed public figure told The Associated Press, as concerns mount about Afghanistan’s capability to fight terrorism once the US has withdrawn its remaining troops by September. Burns recently told the US Congress that neither al-Qaida nor Islamic State extremists could stage attacks against the US. He also reassured Afghan officials that the US would continue to be engaged in counterterrorism efforts.1

Separately, a senior former Afghan security official deeply familiar with the country’s counterterrorism program said two of six units trained and run by the CIA to track militants have already been transferred to Afghan control. In Washington, the CIA declined to comment when asked about the director’s schedule and the agency’s role in Afghanistan. Speaking to Sputnik Afghanistan, Mohammad Arif Rahmani, a member of the Afghan House of Representatives, said that no one was aware of Burns’ trip and what happened during the trip.

“We do not know the exact nature of William Burns’ talks with Afghan security officials, but it can be speculated that foreign forces may be involved in intelligence, equipping and indirect training of our intelligence and security forces so that “Afghanistan will not collapse again.”

“I think this is part of a strategic agreement between the United States and the Afghan government,” he said. They will work together to provide equipment and information to the Afghan military and security forces, as well as our security and intelligence services.

Considering the iteration of the above US high ranking officials, how already, the Taliban were able to control or hold sway over half the country? Undoubtedly, the development of the situation is deliberately orchestrated to get worse. The people of Afghanistan are aware and looks at US policy in their country with hatred. US forces withdrawal from Afghanistan after the peace talk in Istanbul seems another aspect of the same game. The peace deal with Taliban has not any outcome for security and justice.

Credible sources refer to the new US scenario for a persistent invisible presence, after Joe Biden’s remarks in New York Times report that “the Pentagon, the CIA and Western allies are refining their plans to deploy a less detectable and invisible force.” “But they are strong in the region to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a so – called terrorist base again. The Pentagon is talking to allies about where to redeploy them.”

“McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command, said that as the U.S. pulls out all forces, “my concern is the Afghans’ ability to hold ground” and whether they will be able to continue to maintain and fly their aircraft without U.S. aid and financial support. He said it will be paramount to protect the U.S. Embassy and “it is a matter of great concern to me whether or not the future government of Afghanistan will be able to do that once we leave.”2.

In deciding this month on an unconditional troop pull out deadline by September 11, mark the 20^th anniversary of the al-Qaida terror attacks on the US, which apparently triggered the US invasion of Afghanistan. President Joe Biden had argued that a key objective of the US invasion, to prevent terror attacks on the US attack from Afghan soil, has been met.

Colonial powers often use three-pronged techniques. Using military force, strengthening the intelligence apparatus by infiltrating them through their self-installed puppet regimes, and creating a mafia group so that they can pursue their long-term interests under the guise of democracy and patriarchy. It is nothing but a duplicity to divert the public attention.

The physical and personal assassination of nationalists and the isolation of patriotic forces and personalities are another method and policy of neo-colonialism to prepare the public mind by creating anxiety and temptation, as if their existence is vitally important for the security of the occupied countries.

In the current situation, any effort is needed to prepare the minds of the people and public awareness for national unity. Intellectuals and innovators should not hesitate to refrain from informing people and mobilising them outside and inside the country to seek a way so that all people can participate in a horizontal structure of power sharing system and to end the historic monopoly of power from the one puppet group.

1. https://www.9news.com.au/world/cia-head-said-to-have-made-unannounced-trip-to-afghanistan/698d7a65-30df-4ca9-8b83-a2061316caf6
2. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/top-u-s-general-says-afghanistan-military-will-collapse-without-some-help
3. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/cia-head-william-burns-said-to-have-made-unannounced-trip-to-afghanistan/articleshow/82227939.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
4. https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-afghanistan-counterterrorism-kabul-william-burns-e2665fb4a4e47142910c8a2b778a8874

By Fateh Sami

Date: 2^nd May 2021