Dutch troops to pull out of Afghanistan by the end of year after coalition falls

[tekisui]

Source: Telegraph

The government fell because of a dispute between its main partners over how long its soldiers should stay in the war.

A withdrawal, expected to begin in August and be completed by December, would come as a major blow to Nato efforts to battle the Taliban and reassure Afghans that the West will stay and protect them.

For several years thousands of Dutch troops have been based in Uruzgan Province, to the north of Helmand where British soldiers are engaged in deadly fighting against insurgents.

A withdrawal of 2000 Dutch soldiers – whose operation has won the respect of Nato commanders - could put more pressure on overstretched British soldiers in southern Afghanistan, who may be called on to plug the gap which would be left by a Dutch withdrawal.

Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, leader of the centre-right Christian Democrats, announced on Saturday that the coalition government he has led for nearly three years could not continue. Mr Balkenende had wanted to extend the deployment of Dutch troops beyond an August deadline, but the Labour Party, his junior partner in the coalition, was opposed.

Dutch troops had already extended their stay after originally planning to withdraw in 2008. Their deployment has long been controversial with an electorate more at ease with peacekeeping operations than fighting a war. Twenty-one Dutch soldiers have died in Afghanistan. The province where they are based, Uruzgan, is a mountainous area of the south where Taliban support is strong.

more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/7277644/Dutch-troops-to-pull-out-of-Afghanistan-by-the-end-of-year-after-coalition-falls.html

[DCBob]

1. Symbolic..

2000 Dutch soldiers are not critical to the operations.

[Oregone]

4. Make sure you enlist to replace those unnecessary bodies

[DCBob]

5. too old..

they dont need me anyway..

[Oregone]

6. Send your kids then

[DCBob]

9. too young.

give up dude. you are boring.

[Oregone]

10. Keep your fingers crossed.

We will be there a long time yet.

[DCBob]

11. Wow, if it lasts that long, even I will be against it..

promise.

[Oregone]

12. The conflict is already the 2nd longest American war, just surpassing the American Revolution

Its just a year and a half shy of Vietnam, and it probably wont be over by then either. We are truly entering a new age of perpetual war

[DCBob]

13. I dont count the Bush-the-idiot years.

for obvious reasons.

[Forkboy]

8. Symbolism can have a strong effect. Here's a couple that still hold sway over many.....

[Forkboy]

14. An update for DCBob.....

2000 Dutch soldiers are not critical to the operations.

Dutch government collapses over stance on troops

Pullout could put Afghan war forces at greater risk

BERLIN - A last-ditch effort to keep Dutch troops in Afghanistan brought down the governing coalition in the Netherlands early yesterday, immediately raising fears that the Western military coalition fighting the war is increasingly at risk.

Even as the allied offensive in the Taliban stronghold of Marjah continued yesterday, it appeared almost certain that most of the 2,000 Dutch troops would be gone from Afghanistan by the end of the year. The question plaguing military planners was whether a Dutch departure would embolden the war’s critics in other allied countries, where debate over deployment is continuing, and hasten the withdrawal of their troops as well.

“If the Dutch go, which is the implication of all this, that could open the floodgates for other Europeans to say, ‘The Dutch are going, we can go, too,’ ’’ said Julian Lindley-French, professor of defense strategy at the Netherlands Defense Academy in Breda. “The implications are that the US and the British are going to take on more of the load.’’
--
The Dutch troops have been important to the war effort, despite their small numbers, because about 1,500 of them were posted in the dangerous southern Afghan province of Oruzgan.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2010/02/21/dutch_government_collapses_over_stance_on_troops/

Yup, just symbolic...nothing crucial. :eyes:

[harkadog]

15. Don't try and bring facts to DCBob

He is obviously on the scene so he can determine what is symbolic and what is crucial.

[MadHound]

2. The Dutch are, once again, apparently smarter than the US

We need to pull out now. Stop wasting money on an illegal, immoral war and start spending it on helping people here at home.

[elocs]

3. Yes, I read about that here last night.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4276550

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

7. Hopefully, a sign of more withdrawals to come. K&R

In Europe, Obama's war is about as popular as a turd salad.