Tehran Intends to Outplay Trump in Afghanistan
The full-court press on Iran that President Donald Trump has put into play has not yet resulted in changes to Tehran’s regional strategy. Iran’s influence in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen is growing, and now Tehran intends to outplay Trump in Afghanistan.
Admiral Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (NSC), spoke in this vein during his visit to Kabul on Dec. 26 for talks with his Afghan counterpart, Hamdullah Mohib, the Afghan president’s national security advisor.
Ali Shamkhani was the first Iranian leader to publicly confirm the fact that Tehran is conducting negotiations with the Taliban and teaming up with Kabul to do so. According to Admiral Ali Shamkhani, the partial pullout of American troops from Afghanistan announced by President Trump opens up a “wonderful opportunity” to achieve peace, “based on internal and regional opportunities.”
Shamkhani urged the US finalize the complete withdrawal of its troops, the presence of which is not helping to end the civil war. The Iranian admiral suggested peacefully resolving historical problems by negotiating with “those who are ready to lay down their arms and be with the people of Afghanistan” as an alternative to the American military presence. This is the general idea behind Iran’s policy toward Afghanistan, which is aimed at expanding inter-Afghan dialog and constructive interaction between the groups in conflict in this country that has been torn apart by civil war and is under foreign occupation. The American intervention is only making things more difficult here.
US and NATO troops entered Afghanistan 17 years ago, in 2001, and it is now past time to recognize the fact that the Western military coalition will never crush the Taliban’s armed resistance. The Afghan government currently controls no more than 50% of the country’s regions — the lowest level on record since 2015. The Taliban movement continues to seize control of new areas, and the foreign troops present in Afghanistan are not able to prevent this.
President Trump’s plans call for the withdrawal of about 7,000 troops from Afghanistan (about half of the US contingent that still remains there). The Pentagon also has 25,000 quasi-military personnel in Afghanistan who are employed by various private military companies (PMCs). About 16,000 other troops from 39 countries supporting the United States remain in the country as well. At the NATO summit in July 2018, the decision was made to extend the North Atlantic bloc’s financial commitments toward the Afghan army until 2024, but this is not enough to successfully fight the Taliban……..more here