Afghanistan

Rory Stewart's assessment is the only one I have faith in.
He said it was possible to leave at least helicopter surveillance. Which could patrol from safety, and collect I information.
I trust his assessment.

The agreement was that the soldiers could evacuate without violence from the Taliban.

maddyone both China & Russia are full members of NATO, in my opinion they would not support troops (peacekeeping or otherwise) being deployed to Afghanistan under the NATO banner .

I think I read that the U.K. citizens were due to be evacuated tomorrow, maybe this could be brought forward?

Namsnanny

Rory Stewart's assessment is the only one I have faith in.
He said it was possible to leave at least helicopter surveillance. Which could patrol from safety, and collect I information.
I trust his assessment.

Unfortunately to have helicopters or other aircraft deployed it is also essential to have ground cover to protect them, along with all the back-up personnel.

This would involve multiple FOB’s (forward operating bases) due to the range of some of the helicopters/aircraft.

Thank you for your perspective GrannyGravy13.
But I will take my understanding of the situation from RS for the time being.

I think the Americans are going to be relying heavily on drone surveillance and strikes in future. This will be the way that warfare will go. Unfortunately drones don’t do “hearts and minds”!

Namsnanny

Thank you for your perspective GrannyGravy13.
But I will take my understanding of the situation from RS for the time being.

I take my perspective from our AC who is an Officer in the Army, served in Afghanistan and was instrumental in decommissioning the FOBS.

It is impossible to have an air surveillance troop without back up ground staff, (medics, extra crews, engineers (essential for maintenance of aircraft) signals(for communication and tech security) cooks/mess staff along with the general troops who erect and maintain the bases on the ground)

Greyduster

I think the Americans are going to be relying heavily on drone surveillance and strikes in future. This will be the way that warfare will go. Unfortunately drones don’t do “hearts and minds”!

Yes you are correct, drones are capable of inflicting untold damage on the ground without risking airmen and aircraft.

China has said it will recognize the new Taliban government which of course has been a great boost for them. As for a peacekeeping force,remember Bosnia, the peacekeepers were completely useless and stood by as civilians were massacred. People tried to get to the peacekeepers enclaves for protection, for all the good it did them. Completely shocking. So maybe helpless peacekeepers that can't keep the peace are best forgotten about. The truth of the matter seems to be a complete collapse and failure of the armed forces and government of Afghanistan who must have been aware of any deal the Americans had cooked up even if they didn't agree it.

Sky News is reporting that U.K. parliament is to be recalled due to the situation in Afghanistan.

Jabberwok

China has said it will recognize the new Taliban government which of course has been a great boost for them. As for a peacekeeping force,remember Bosnia, the peacekeepers were completely useless and stood by as civilians were massacred. People tried to get to the peacekeepers enclaves for protection, for all the good it did them. Completely shocking. So maybe helpless peacekeepers that can't keep the peace are best forgotten about. The truth of the matter seems to be a complete collapse and failure of the armed forces and government of Afghanistan who must have been aware of any deal the Americans had cooked up even if they didn't agree it.

I remember Bosnia too well, our son was deployed for two six months tours he has never spoken to me or his siblings about what he witnessed, the only person he opened up to was DH who has kept AS’s silence on this matter.

I listened to an articulate young woman in Kabul on r4 this morning, early twenties, graduate, whose friends are leaving if they can. It was both harrowing and moving because her world as she has known it is due to change so drastically.
I really felt for her and all those who face such adversity,

The Chinese involvement is stunning. I thought I'd mis-heard this on the news the other night.
Bearing in mind their contempt & 're-education' programme for their own Muslim population.

GrannyGravy13

maddyone both China & Russia are full members of NATO, in my opinion they would not support troops (peacekeeping or otherwise) being deployed to Afghanistan under the NATO banner .

I think I read that the U.K. citizens were due to be evacuated tomorrow, maybe this could be brought forward?

Are they? I thought Putin used the excuse of NATO being on his doorstep for his invasion of Ukraine.

SueDonim sorry I was getting the UN which Russia is a full part of since 1945 and NATO muddled (I put it down to only having 2 hours sleep last night).

I think I was muddling NATO and the UN as well. I think I meant a UN peace keeping force. Not that it matters now, because the latest reports are that the Taliban are in the whole of Kabul. What a mess it all is. Will Afghanistan end up like Iran? I think it will be worse. This whole situation reminds me of the fall of Saigon, but I think it will be even worse for the population.

Iran is a civilised country and I don’t think you can compare it with the new Afghani regime. It is far,far worse in Afghanistan. It reminds me of Cambodia at its worst when Pol Pot took over. We are all standing by helpless whilst these low life thugs take charge.

nanna8

Iran is a civilised country and I don’t think you can compare it with the new Afghani regime. It is far,far worse in Afghanistan. It reminds me of Cambodia at its worst when Pol Pot took over. We are all standing by helpless whilst these low life thugs take charge.

Really, civilised. Jailing dual nationals on any pretext, and keeping them locked up for years. Authoritarian state, who is doing exactly as their predecessor, the Shah, did. Brutal dictatorship civilised, not by Western standards.
The Iranian government is widely considered to be authoritarian, and has attracted widespread criticism for its significant constraints and abuses against human rights and civil liberties,[26][27][28][29] including several violent suppressions of mass protests, unfair elections, and limited rights for women and children.