I see this speech to the West Point cadets as framing a new mission which focuses on diplomacy, working with other nations and the UN to bring economic aid and stability to heal all the sore places causing the planet to scream with pain.
His real enemy will now be the corruption and abuses that have made Afgans turn away from the US military support of Karsai, his drug dealing brother and General Dostum and to the Taliban. Not just corruption in Afghanistan but in Pakistan and wherever else in the world it creates the frustration, agression and hostility we call terrorism.
Right makes Might. Thats the message insurgents win support with.
I see Obama as wanting to get out of Iraq and Afghanistan so he can get back to jobs and healthcare and using the strategic placement of 30,000 troops where they can stabilise and chill out the hot spots in order to be able to withdraw.
We will remove our combat brigades from Iraq by the end of next summer, and all of our troops by the end of 2011.
Essentially as he removes the 180,000 troops from Iraq he adds 30,000 to stabilize the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan
The 30,000 additional troops that I am announcing tonight will deploy in the first part of 2010
and
allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011
What follows is for me the crux of the speech
we will work with our partners, the UN, and the Afghan people to pursue a more effective civilian strategy, so that the government can take advantage of improved security.
This is going to be a civillian and not a military strategy based on diplomacy and humanitarian aid rather than nation building; (ie; setting up a puppet dictator or strongman like Karzai or General Dostum and selling them arms)
This effort must be based on performance. The days of providing a blank check are over.
No more Halliburton Blackwater CIA covert actions, rather covert diplomatic actions to stabilize disputes and then remove nukes from Pakistan and India
President Karzai’s inauguration speech sent the right message about moving in a new direction. And going forward, we will be clear about what we expect from those who receive our assistance. We will support Afghan Ministries, Governors, and local leaders that combat corruption and deliver for the people.
I read between the lines there that he is going to hold Karzai's feet to the fire by interupting the chain of command and going directly to the govenors and local leaders, some of whom might in another time have been approached to instigate coups.
We expect those who are ineffective or corrupt to be held accountable. And we will also focus our assistance in areas – such as agriculture – that can make an immediate impact in the lives of the Afghan people.
In other words use the 30,000 troops to root out the coruption in the Karzai government that is building the support for the Taliban, either get rid of the poppy fields by bringing in another cash crop, or as others have suggested arrange for the legal export of legitimate pharmeceuticals rather than illegal drugs.
I like that he won't be supporting the Karzai government or the Pakistani government but the UN aid workers. check out the Devex (THE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT JOBS NEWSLETTER - December 1, 2009) job listings. There have been 90 USAID Jobs in Afghanistan posted in the last month.
Regional Program Development Officer
International Medical Corps
Apply By: 24 December 2009
Afghanistan | Senior-level
Rural Enterprise Development Program
(AREDP)/World Bank
Afghanistan | Mid-level
Those are going to be the real boots on the ground this time around. They aren't just going to Afghanistan either. They will be going to places like Indonesia, East Timor, Timor Liest, Asia, South Africa, the Ukraine, Moldavia, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen, Malwhi, Ghana, Turkey, Europe and South America
America seeks an end to this era of war and suffering. We have no interest in occupying your country. We will support efforts by the Afghan government to open the door to those Taliban who abandon violence and respect the human rights of their fellow citizens
I love that Obama is going to be bringing the moderate Taliban into the decision making process. He's planning on turning enemies into allies with his policy of Right makes Might.
As President, I refuse to set goals that go beyond our responsibility, our means, our or interests. And I must weigh all of the challenges that our nation faces. I do not have the luxury of committing to just one.
He's reminding us that his mind is on nation building here at home rather than in Afghanistan. Jobs, Healthcare, cleaning up after Bush, pushing for action on alternative energy, global warming, nuclear non proliferation...
we must rebuild our strength here at home. Our prosperity provides a foundation for our power. It pays for our military. It underwrites our diplomacy. It taps the potential of our people, and allows investment in new industry. And it will allow us to compete in this century as successfully as we did in the last. That is why our troop commitment in Afghanistan cannot be open-ended – because the nation that I am most interested in building is our own.
This part was spoken very forcefully and its the essence of his Right makes Might proposition
we must draw on the strength of our values – for the challenges that we face may have changed, but the things that we believe in must not. That is why we must promote our values by living them at home – which is why I have prohibited torture and will close the prison at Guantanamo Bay. And we must make it clear to every man, woman and child around the world who lives under the dark cloud of tyranny that America will speak out on behalf of their human rights, and tend to the light of freedom, and justice, and opportunity, and respect for the dignity of all peoples. That is who we are. That is the moral source of America’s authority.
For me at least, this speech is about quality rather than quantity. It isn't the number of troops that is important, they aren't the only people Obama will be expecting to make sacrifices. The mission they are given
is the important thing and backing that up the mission we will be given here at home.
our security and leadership does not come solely from the strength of our arms. It derives from our people – from the workers and businesses who will rebuild our economy; from the entrepreneurs and researchers who will pioneer new industries; from the teachers that will educate our children, and the service of those who work in our communities at home; from the diplomats and Peace Corps volunteers who spread hope abroad; and from the men and women in uniform who are part of an unbroken line of sacrifice that has made government of the people, by the people, and for the people a reality on this Earth.
Obama has found the way forward out of the morass of eight years of war and no solution to the real problems.
We will go forward with the confidence that right makes might, and with the commitment to forge an America that is safer, a world that is more secure, and a future that represents not the deepest of fears but the highest of hopes.