John Kerry In Afghanistan To Push To Keep U.S. Troops In The Country After 2014

[Purveyor]

Source: Agence France-Presse

US Secretary of State John Kerry held talks with President Hamid Karzai in Kabul on Friday to try to advance troubled negotiations with Afghanistan on some US troops staying in the country after 2014.

Karzai said this week that he was prepared to walk away from the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) talks if Afghanistan was not happy with its conditions.

The United States has repeatedly pressed for the pact to be signed by the end of this month, so that the US-led NATO military coalition can schedule its withdrawal of 87,000 combat troops by December 2014.

“President Obama and President Karzai reaffirmed both back in January that the goal here was to complete the BSA in October,” a state department official travelling with Kerry told reporters.

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/10/11/john-kerry-in-afghanistan-to-push-to-keep-u-s-troops-in-the-country-after-2014/

[zeemike]

1. So we are not really leaving after all.

I guess we need a base there too...to continue the war...and all that talk of us getting out was just bullshit.

[roguevalley]

22. yeah. Kerry is still looking for that last man to die for a lie so he can tell him personally.

[Comrade Grumpy]

2. No, thanks. I hope Karzai scuttles this agreement. No forever war for us in Afghanistan.

[Comrade Grumpy]

3. Imagine if we still had troops in Iraq.

The Iraqis scuttled the deal to leave US forces behind. We should thank them.

[OnyxCollie]

20. Thank Chelsea Manning.

It was her release of the diplomatic cables revealing US war crimes that scuttled the deal for US troop immunity after the status of forces agreement ended.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

24. We have many troops in Iraq ..

... State Department protective force, staffed by mercenaries from Blackwater/Xe/Academi. Mostly staying in the fortress we call the U.S. Embassy.

The army that Hillary built.

I wonder if they're getting paid during the shutdown.

[reddread]

25. you know what they say

it takes an army to raze a village

[Beacool]

26. Yeah, of course it's Hillary's fault. She ruled the land.

I guess the president is just a figurehead.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

34. You're right, of course, everything is the President's fault ...

... including Benghazi.

State had nothing to do with arranging security at State's embassy.

No, wait, even better ... it was the fault of a KENNEDY! (Patrick Kennedy, State Dept Security).

http://www.npr.org/2011/12/27/144198497/no-u-s-troops-but-an-army-of-contractors-in-iraq

[Beacool]

40. Benghazi???????

Great job of spewing RW crap. Why don't you take that to the Freepers' site?

[warrant46]

41. They are getting paid

And rather handsomely

[Myrina]

4. Why not? Its not like we could use them here to help rebuild infrastructure ...

Oh, wait.

[L0oniX]

17. Oh they will call them back over here when everyone is rioting and setting up the guillotines.

[Plucketeer]

5. NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Secretary Kerry! Your medals await your reclaiming them!

Edit to add: Secretary Kerry must not have gotten the memo that "president" Obama's been tied up and carried to the White House cellars. Campaign Obama's been dusted off and put in place for now.
Senator Kerry - anti-war hero Kerry - do you read your E-mails?

[blm]

10. Did you READ the article? Headline doesn't match the story

.

[Plucketeer]

12. Right

And by these standards, we should STILL have a presence in Japan and Germany! oh - wait - we still do..... never mind.

[peace13]

6. Oh for the love of....

WAR! Give it a rest Kerry, or better yet give the troops a rest.

[bigwillq]

7. Kerry and Obama: Warmongers!

What a joke Kerry has become.

[blm]

8. The headline doesn't match the content of the story.

>>>>
The United States has repeatedly pressed for the pact to be signed by the end of this month, so that the US-led NATO military coalition can schedule its withdrawal of 87,000 combat troops by December 2014.
>>>

The agreement would see a few thousand US troops remain in Afghanistan to train local forces and target Al-Qaeda remnants.


According to the Afghan government, talks ground to a halt over US demands for the right to conduct unilateral military operations, and on how the US would pledge to protect Afghanistan.
>>>>>>>

[Plucketeer]

13. Maybe Karzai can read...

between the lines. " talks ground to a halt over US demands for the right to conduct unilateral military operations," Right.

[blm]

18. as in....be able to launch an action ala BinLaden in Pakistan

If you knew anything about Kerry, he was consistent that the terrorists themselves should be targeted as a law enforcement action backed up by special forces instead of launching war in countries where they are operating. This is groundwork being laid to follow through with that strategy.

[Ash_F]

32. Too bad US law enforcement has become a joke. /nt

[blm]

37. Apparently you had nothing valuable to add.

.

[Ash_F]

39. I think the Afghans seem to have a similar sentiment.

But yes, the ugly American would not see them as people of value.

[warrant46]

42. A few thousand US troops remain in Afghanistan to target Al-Qaeda remnants.

Well at least Dover will still be in business to Embalm a few 18 year old corpses

[avaistheone1]

9. Just another year~

How many times have we heard that tune?

[blm]

11. It's been Dec 2014 for the last 2 years. The headline is a distortion

and really doesn't match the content. The deal put forth was always to leave behind a limited number of troops to train Afghanis during the transition period, and, may be especially important to stability for the new leader elected in spring of 2014 to replace Karzai.

[BluegrassStateBlues]

14. Before or after the strike on Syria and Iran, combined with the repeal of Medicare/SS? nt

[Lasher]

15. The proposed BSA has a duration of at least 10 years.

The agreement, which is known as the Enduring Strategic Partnership Agreement between Afghanistan and the United States, lays out groundwork for US help to support Afghan economic development, health care programs, education, and social initiatives are part of the agreement. To put it simply, we would agree to continue bankrolling Afghanistan for at least another decade. I'm afraid to guess how much more that might cost.

There's 87,207 NATO troops in Afghanistan right now, according to the Brookings Institution Afghanistan Index (page 5). Several thousand of these soldiers would remain there after this year if a separate Status of Forces Agreement is reached. Presumably, Karzai will sign the SOFA if we come up with enough suitcases of money for his Dubai accounts.

[L0oniX]

16. Then you fucking pay for it John!

[blm]

19. knee-jerk response to an overwrought headline....

.

[YvonneCa]

33. A valiant effort to tell the truth...

...blm. Thank you.
Either many here are too lazy to read or they lack reading comprehension skills..or, most likely, just enjoy latching on to any slight opening to bash John Kerry. I now understand how we got eight years of GWB.

Sad thing is, though, this is a Democratic board. I thought Dems were much smarter than that.

[blm]

36. Some Dems can be just as lazy minded as most GOP voters.

Overwrought headlines are bad for accuracy.

So, I am not surprised by the postings here. I expect them.

[zipplewrath]

43. Actually just different points of view

The reaction is based upon a standard that any troops remaining in country is a bad idea. The Administration has always attempted to differentiate between troops in country to combat terrorism versus troops intended to maintain the authority of the central government. They did something similar in Iraq. Not all democrats agree that this is a significant differentiation. As such, reactions to this kind of article will be different depending upon which view you hold.

The proof of the pudding is in the tasting and if this is anything like Iraq, people kept dying after the supposed end of "combat operations". In the end, I suspect the same will be true in Afghanistan. They'll keep dying of gunfire and explosions, even if we don't call it "combat". And that is different from residual troops in Germany and Japan.

[mpcamb]

21. Bring 'em home...

Hell, do it tomorrow.

[cristianmarie533]

23. Enough is enough!

No more troops to Afghanistan, the place is a hopeless basketcase. Pull our troops out of that country ASAP, as we did in Iraq.

[reddread]

27. we did not pull our troops out asap

please attend to the facts to further your worthy cause!

[intaglio]

28. Considering that it ia Karzai who wants to keep the US troops

Whilst the USA wants them out the headline is the the reverse of the truth.

Karzai will be out of power within a year without US troops

[Comrade Grumpy]

30. Karzai is going to be out of power anyway. His term is up.

[Wolf Frankula]

29. In His Life P.J O'Rourke Said One Intelligent Thing

"A Smart foreign policy is one that keeps you out of Afghanistan."

Time to go. Osama is dead. We're done here. Time to leave Afghanistan to its barbarous people.

Wolf.

[Cal Carpenter]

31. Occupy!

Oh, wait....

[Sunlei]

35. If Kabul doesn't sign then we'll 'zero option' and still be out by Dec. 2014

Kabul knows he needs the help. October is almost over Kabul.

"The agreement would see a few thousand US troops remain in Afghanistan to train local forces and target Al-Qaeda remnants."

"But Kabul has dismissed the possibility that the US may enact the “zero option” of a complete pull-out"

[hughee99]

38. We've already signed an agreement to have troops there well after the 2014.

We did it even before Biden told Ryan in the debate that we'd be all out by 2014 "come hell or high water".

https://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/05/02-6