Cameron will speak to the Commons tomorrow and prepare the ground for a new deception.
The whole edifice of the justification for our lethal presence in Afghanistan is a cobweb of lies. The deaths of 364 soldiers are justified to keep terrorism off our streets, to defeat Al Quaeda that, we are assured, is the same thing as the Taliban. Peace will come when we can hand over security to an ethical non-corrupt Afghan Police and Army. This will be achieved through the cooperation with Karzai’s Government and our allies in Pakistan. Sadly in this fairy tale, we will live unhappily ever after.
A new hideous truth threatens to undermine that edifice. Osama has been comfortably housed and protected for years by our trusted allies. Religious, tribal and family links between Afghans and Pakistanis are stronger than their friendship of convenience with NATO countries. Our trust and optimism has deluded our Government into risking the lives of our soldiers in a hopeless enterprise. We are judged on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border to be the alien, Ferengi, infidel intruders who are not to be trusted. We have no role in the Pashtun lands and we will be eventually expelled from them as our ancestors were after great losses in blood and treasure.
NATO would be justified in blaming Pakistan for harbouring the West’s most dangerous enemy while purporting to be our ally. Dare the Government risk antagonize the already, unstable, divided nuclear power? They have military might that cannot be pushed around as Iraq and Afghanistan were. Tonight’s meeting of COBRA will be a diffifult one for David Cameron. Tomorrow he will seek unity by underlining fresh terrorist threats arising from Osama’s execution. But he will also try to weave a new fiction on Pakistan.
Facing the reality on Pakistan’s treachery would be a truth too far.
Mark's People
An invigorating bit of campaigning today at Bulwark Chepstow.
This is in the Monmouth constituency where a surprise can be expected. Certainly the warm friendly welcome that we had today was very promising. Mark Whitcutt is a fine candidate. He can do it.
Paul, you will probably be interested in this Crag Murray blog.
He claims the internal FCO line has now changed to no substantive British withdrawal from Afghanistan until 2015 (year after Karzai term in office ends) at the earliest. They think Karzai will flee or lose if NATO withdraws, and "the real thinking is that if Karzai falls from power after our withdrawal, we will be seen to have “Lost” the war, while the overriding aim in Whitehall and in Washington is to get out in circumstances in which we can claim victory." I assume this means the FCO thinks the US won't withdraw next year.
http://craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2011/05/no-end-to-afghan-war/
Posted by: rwendland | May 10, 2011 at 02:40 PM