China have got some clout in the region, as you've said they'll invest in Afghanistan, and with that a clear run with its Belt and Road initiative, they've given Iran billions for connection to Chahbar and they've already developed a port in Pakistan for a direction connection to the Persian Gulf. Only a few months the back they made India surrender parts of its country. Seemingly very shrewd.
Afghanistan
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) and Jamie (@Vault Dweller) are here to talk about United's dreadful home defeat at the hands of Big Ange's Tottenham Hotspur. Should this have been the end of Ten Hag? How long does he actually have left? And does Nik finally want ETH out?!
China have got some clout in the region, as you've said they'll invest in Afghanistan, and with that a clear run with its Belt and Road initiative, they've given Iran billions for connection to Chahbar and they've already developed a port in Pakistan for a direction connection to the Persian Gulf. Only a few months the back they made India surrender parts of its country. Seemingly very shrewd.
Since the median wealth per adult in Hong Kong is $174, 000 I doubt finding cash to live benefit free for 6 months will be the main problem.
Not sure it's a case of neocons. You just can't do that to a superpower and not expect an overwhelming response. I remember just after 9/11 I flew over to the US, and the mood was febrile. I don't even think Bush had much of a choice really. Would be the same if the Afghans did the same to China or Russia. I broadly agree with the bolded too, but at that point it was about revenge. Nothing and nobody was stopping it.
And you're also right nobody gave a shit beforehand. It was only in August? 2001 that they even authorised a covert program against the taliban.
Months before, after he warned of the 9/11 attacks, a smart play would have been to let/facilitate Massoud win, and crush the Pakistani side of the Taliban whilst he did. He had a ready made alliance ready which broadly supported the cause. But people didn't even take meetings with him. Mossad were barred from helping, Jerusalem didn't even answer his calls. Pakistan wanted his head on a plate, and the US preferred to fund through Pakistan only. Only India did anything anything at all of note (and that's only because the Taliban were almost a branch of the ISI around that time.) The US possibly leaked his location to Al Quaeda through the ISI. 2 days before 9/11. 2 Fecking days. No invasion. Interference certainly, but no invasion.
And yea, once you're there, I'm probably more of a maximalist than anything else. I believe you should clean up your own shit.
Yeah direct pipelines for oil from Iran and Russia would certainly add a strategic advantage and both seem almost inevitable... as well as pipelines from the huge reserves in the caspian
Plus if its true there is a lot of rare earth materials in Afghan then China will surely be the go to source for money and extraction
Live stream from the Taliban-occupied Presidential Palace:
They've got a direct route to the Persian Gulf, they've connected Kashgar to Northern Pakistan and then to the Arabian Sea. It's cut out the South China Sea, the US had too many bases in the area and they also had to get past Indian water. Now they will get their fuel direct without any issues especially considering the US has left Afghanistan and India can't use Afghanistan as a launch pad anymore. But yeah Iranian and Russian oil too. I think there are clear winners and losers here.
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This has been a complete disaster for Biden.
Serious questions need to be asked where $2T has gone.
Serious questions need to be asked where $2T has gone.
Weapons manufacturers, corrupt politicians and warlords etc etc.
The next step will be for the West to identify the Taliban leader and then build him up as carpet-chewing mad and evil to boot. The British media will happily do that without any prompting. I don't know what the US media is like but I imagine they will too. Enemy leaders have to be mad, it's in the rules.
I mean, he likely is mad in fairness.
I mean, would they be wrong?
As far as I know, the taliban leaders are well known. It's obviously not that controversial to paint a taliban leader as mad and evil...they stand for a lot of things the western world to deem as evil and rightfully so.
So well known you didn't need to name him. Fair enough.
Yeah, sorry, thought you were able to google. I can't remember every fecking name I read in this context.
1996 - Mullah Omar displays the Cloak of the Prophet in Kandahar:
The Pentagon has authorised the deployment of another 1,000 troops to Afghanistan, according to Reuters, bringing the total number of soldiers sent by America to 6,000.
The troops will come from the 82nd Airborne Division, a source told Reuters
The troops will come from the 82nd Airborne Division, a source told Reuters
Imagine being amongst that group. I'd be shitting myself.
Irrespective of your political allegiances, you have to respect the brass balls of the people who are putting their feet on the ground there.
Perhaps they will build him up as a guy who's into chopping off heads and hands, stoning people for adultery and is a religious nutjob.
Don't know if true.
But some political analysis, outside of the UK/America is that this Taliban is not like old Taliban. The older ones being systematically being killed over the last 20 years.
The new bunch could actually be "stooges" who will bow to American will. Same name but different mindset. Hand chosen and "friends".
Time will tell
I have a question. I know after 9-11 the Taliban were accused of harbouring Al Qaeda, perhaps even supporting them. What’s their relationship with ISIS, for example, informally if not formally.
I‘m reading about Haibatullah Achundsada, Mullah Baradar, Siradschuddin Hakkani and Mullah Jakub.
obviously time will tell but so far it doesn’t seem like the west has no clue of the hierarchy and important individuals
They are in conflict with the Af-Pak ISIS franchise, ISKP (Islamic State Khorasan Province).
There's no relationship. Both detest each other. So much so that there's an amnesty for ANDSF soldier but those of ISKP won't be spared by Taliban.
If the Taliban are complicit in 9/11 for harbouring Al Qaeda, are the US, UK, France, Germany, etc. complicit in other terror attacks for harbouring white supremacists and ISIS cells?
It's interesting because we've spent so long being told that the Taliban are evil murderers, and yet they've taken a whole country in less than a month with relatively very little actual bloodshed. Clearly there's a lot of support within Afghanistan itself for them.
Their laws will be progressively backwards compared to the west, but I think at some point you have to just let the people rule and be ruled the way they want to.
Their laws will be progressively backwards compared to the west, but I think at some point you have to just let the people rule and be ruled the way they want to.
If the Taliban taking the country was detrimental to the 1% in England, USA, et al, it wouldn’t have happened.
The ruling class ghouls earn whatever side the pendulum swings. It going dead in the middle is where they earn least.
The ruling class ghouls earn whatever side the pendulum swings. It going dead in the middle is where they earn least.
Osama Bin Laden was best mates with Mullah Omar and they operated in broad daylight with the Taliban. ISIS cells in europe operate covertly whilst hiding from the goverment. I don't know how many white supremacists terrorattacks you've witnessed in Europe. Anders Breihvick I guess.
Language. Culture. It’s that simple. German people could liberate us from our Disaster Capitalist overlords and hold land for decades. But a plummy accent telling the masses that the invaders were gone… easy win.
The thousands of innocent people they’ve killed to get to this point don’t count?
That’s a hot take.
Which is highly unfortunate for women especially. And any who strives towards a liberal society.
What do you mean by this?