US Military facing leadership failure

A group of US soldiers in Helmand Province in Afghanistan

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/162189.html

An American political journalist says the US military is experiencing “a complete failure of leadership,” due to the violent attitude of some commanders.

Alexander Cockburn said in an interview with Press TV that the commanding approach in some military units would “encourage atrocities and torture.”

He made his comments with regard to the April 4 trial of Army Staff Sergeant Calvin Gibbs, who has been accused of organizing a team of soldiers to kill Afghan civilians.

"Throughout 10-15 years you can see many examples of complete failure of leadership… committing atrocities or encouraging atrocities in the case of torture, conniving at torture, commanding torture and then evading responsibilities," he further explained.

Since the 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan, more than 34,000 Afghan civilians have been killed in the country as a result of the war.

The United States currently has 100,000 troops in war-ravaged Afghanistan. The total number of coalition forces in the Asian country reaches 150,000. US President Barack Obama had earlier promised that the majority of the US forces would leave Afghanistan in 2011, but later said they would reside in the country up until 2014. Both US and UK authorities believe that at least a portion of their forces will stay in the war-hit country to help the Afghan authorities with the management of the internal affairs for several years to come.

Earlier in November, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said it is time for the United States to reduce its presence and military operations in Afghanistan.

"The time has come to reduce military operations…The time has come to reduce the presence of, you know, boots in Afghanistan . . . to reduce the intrusiveness into the daily Afghan life," Karzai noted.

In January 15, Human Rights Watch warned about the worsening security situation in Afghanistan.

In its annual report for 2010, the rights group said security has deteriorated in most regions of Afghanistan, despite the US troop surge last year.

It added that there was a ten percent increase in civilian casualties last year in the war-ravaged country.

The developments come as a recent report says US-led military operations have inflicted over USD 100 million in damages on public property in southern Afghanistan.

US uncertain about Afghanistan pullout

US Joint Chief of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159911.html


The top US military official has cast doubts about the time of a withdrawal from Afghanistan and the number of American forces to leave the violence-wracked nation.

The head of the Joint Chief of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen reiterated that the Pentagon does not know how many soldiers will be pulled out in July and predicted a rise in violence throughout the year.

“As difficult as it may be to accept, we must prepare ourselves for more violence and more casualties in coming months. The violence will be worse in 2011 than it was in 2010 in many parts of Afghanistan,” AFP quoted Mullen as saying on Wednesday.

The US military chief stated that the drawdown would depend on the level of Afghan security forces' readiness in taking control.

He pointed out the “fragile gains” the US-led NATO forces have made in the country but did not fail to claim that the Taliban were losing the war especially in dangerous areas like the Kandahar province.

On Tuesday, US Vice President Joe Biden said Washington will not withdraw its troops from Afghanistan in the previously announced deadline of 2014, if Kabul does not want it to do so.

Biden's remarks are contradictory to an earlier pledge by President Barack Obama for a major drawdown of troops from the war-ravaged country by July 2011.

In 2001, the US and its allies invaded Afghanistan under the pretext of wiping the country off terrorism. However, the US-led occupation of Afghanistan has failed to establish security in the country .

Violence and terror attacks remain commonplace almost a decade after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan.

Statistics indicate that 2010 was the deadliest year for both the civilians and the foreign troops fighting in the country.

US challenges Karzai on security firms

Private security firms, competing for contracts
worth billions of dollars, have long been regarded
as a major irritant by Afghans.


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=138233§ionid=3510203


The Pentagon has played down Afghan President Hamid Karzai's call to shut down foreign private security firms operating in his country.

Pentagon Spokesman Colonel David Lapan said Tuesday that even though Washington acknowledges that there are problems with the firms, the issue must be addressed in a way that also meets US security requirements.

"There are security needs that we have, that our forces have … so we want to make sure that we are addressing the Afghan government's concerns but meeting our requirements as well," said Lapan, quoted by AFP.

This follows an earlier statement by Karzai's office that his government is "serious" about getting rid of foreign private security firms.

The statement added that the issue had been discussed with NATO leaders over the past few days and a deadline would soon be set for the withdrawal of such companies.

Private security companies, competing for contracts worth billions of dollars, have long been regarded as a major irritant by Afghans following a series of scandals involving the killing of civilians.

Reports say that these companies have deployed an estimated 40,000 armed personnel throughout Afghanistan -- most of whom work for Western enterprises.

Most Afghans see these private firms as accumulators of wealth and power with no interest in the security for Afghanistan. They are also widely reported to be overbearing and abusive, notably on the country's roads.

US funds billions more for Afghan war

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=136490§ionid=3510203


The US Congress has approved an extra multi-billion dollar fund to pay for President Barack Obama's increase in US troop numbers in Afghanistan.

The House of Representatives voted 308 to 114 in favor of the $60bn war-funding bill.

The Senate had already passed the bill, which will now go to Obama to be signed into law.

The package provides roughly $33.5 billion for the additional 30,000 more troops in Afghanistan and nearly $4 billion for other programs in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.

The bill also covers some expenses for military operations in the war-torn Iraq.

The new money is in addition to about $130 billion the Congress already approved for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq this year. The US Congress has appropriated over $1 trillion for the two wars since 2001.

The latest vote comes at a time when some lawmakers are growing skeptical about the nine-year-long war in Afghanistan.

Interestingly, more Republicans supported the bill than Obama's fellow Democrats did.

The recent leak of tens of thousands of secret military documents on the war in Afghanistan was the main reason behind the 102 Democratic votes against the bill.

The files released by the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks detail how US-led forces have killed or wounded Afghan civilians in unreported attacks.

US soldiers suicide at record high

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=135102§ionid=3510203



The suicide rate among US soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan has escalated to a record high, with an average of one suicide per day in June.

According to US Army statistics, a total of 32 soldiers took their own lives last month, making it the worst month on record for Army suicides. Twenty-one were on active duty, with the rest being among National Guards or Army Reserve in an inactive status, CNN reported Friday.

Psychologists have blamed renewed deployments and prolonged tours of duty as the major factors contributing to the higher suicide rate.

Last year was the worst for the US Army in terms of suicides with 244 confirmed or suspected cases despite the adoption of a range of initiatives by the army to try to contain the problem.

The US Department of Defense reported that 160 active-duty army soldiers committed suicide in 2009 up from 140 in 2008.

A total of 4,326 American soldiers have been killed in the war-torn Iraq since the US-led invasion of the country in 2003. Iraq has witnessed bombings and terrorist attacks on an almost daily basis ever since.

Iraq has witnessed bombings and terrorist attacks on an almost daily basis since 2003.

Some 140,000 US-led troops are currently stationed in Afghanistan. A further 10,000 are expected to be deployed there in the coming weeks.

McChrystal's replacement does not signal a change in US strategies in Afghanistan. The former commander, citing a letter by US Ambassador to Kabul Karl Eikenberry, has said that should the American strategy fail in Afghanistan, it would be blamed on Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

'Brawler' general to lead Centcom

Mattis was reprimanded for saying in 2005 that 'it's fun to shoot some people' [EPA]



Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/07/201078233717799692.html


A US general once criticised for saying it was "fun to shoot some people" has been picked by the Pentagon to replace General David Petraeus as head of the military command overseeing the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

General James Mattis, who currently heads the US Joint Forces Command in the US state of Virginia, and who previously led troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, was selected to lead US Central Command, or Centcom, which oversees operations in 20 countries stretching from Egypt across the Middle East and into South and Central Asia.

Robert Gates, the defence secretary, praised Mattis as "one of the military's most innovative and iconoclastic thinkers" as he announced his recommendation for the post on Thursday.

Barack Obama, the US president, must formalize the nomination before it goes to congress for approval.

Mattis was reprimanded by the Marine Corps for telling a San Diego, California conference in 2005 that "it's fun to shoot some people".

"I'll be right up front with you, I like brawling," he had said during a panel discussion.

"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil," Mattis said. "You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them."

On Thursday, Gates dismissed concerns about the comments, saying appropriate action had been taken at the time - Mattis was reprimanded and told to choose his words more carefully – and the four-star general had learnt his lesson.

'Lesson learnt'

"I think that the subsequent five years have demonstrated that the lesson was learnt, Gates said.

Retired Brigadier-General Mark Kimmitt, who has held a number of posts in the US government and military, echoed Gates' remarks.

Pointing out that Mattis' one-off comment was made five years ago, he told Al Jazeera that the general had since proven himself as a statesman, including by working with 27 nations in a Nato command position.

From 2007 to 2009, Mattis served as Nato's supreme allied commander for transformation as he also led the US Joint Forces Command which "focuses on supporting current operations while shaping US forces for the future", according to its website.

Mattis had "the right experience for the job" and was the "right man for the job", Kimmitt said.

Mattis, who had been due to retire, was picked for the Centcom post after a shakeup following inappropriate comments made by General Stanley McChrystal, which led to his June 23 sacking as the US and Nato commander in Afghanistan.

General David Petraeus vacated his post as Centcom chief and agreed to assume command of the Afghan war after McChrystal and his aides were quoted making dismissive remarks about senior Obama administration officials in a Rolling Stone magazine article.

"Obviously in the wake of the Rolling Stone interview, we discussed this kind of thing," Gates said on Thursday. "And I have every confidence that General Mattis will respond to questions and speak publicly about the matters for which he is responsible in an entirely appropriate way."

House OK's 'Mission Impossible' fund

House approves additional funds for Afghan war


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=133059§ionid=3510203



The US House of Representatives has approved an additional fund aimed at supporting President Barack Obama's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan.

The House did not act in time to get the $33 billion to the troops by July 4 as the Pentagon had requested, after the Democratic leaders procrastinated for weeks over the bill.

The fund will be spent on deploying another 30,000 troops to the battlefields in Afghanistan.

The new funding comes over and above the $130 billion Congress has already approved for the dual wars of Afghanistan and Iraq for this fiscal year.

The bill can only become law if both houses agree. Congress will not be in session again until July 12. It is unclear how the Senate will view the additions the House has made.

The legislation was advanced despite increasing pessimism and unhappiness among lawmakers over the war in Afghanistan.

"Why are we continuing to send our troops into a Mission Impossible?" Reuters quoted Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio as saying.

In a 260-162 vote, the House also defeated a Democratic amendment that would require Obama to set a timetable for withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan.

'Petraeus to create crisis in Mideast'

Gen. David Petraeus, the newly appointed commander of the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan


Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=133140§ionid=351020403



The newly appointed top US and NATO military commander in Afghanistan Gen. David Petraeus pursues a strategy that will destabilize the Middle East region, an Iranian envoy says.

"Petraeus pursues a certain strategy that will create crisis in the [Middle East] region and will further complicate the issues," Iran's Ambassador to Afghanistan Fada-Hossein Maleki said.

Maleki noted that the former top US commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, had major differences with the White House officials.

"McChrystal believed that it is possible to use a combination of political and military initiatives in Afghanistan, but some White House hardliners disregarded the idea," Fars news agency quoted the Iranian envoy as saying on Friday.

Maleki also slammed the British military forces in Afghanistan over their poor function that has exacerbated situation in the war-torn country.

He noted that the UN had tasked Britain to fight narcotics in Afghanistan, but the production of the drugs has increased "forty-fold over the past eight years" in the country.

Petraeus landed in Kabul late Friday, where he is to take command of both US and NATO operations in Afghanistan.

McChrystal was effectively fired for remarks he and his aides made to a reporter for Rolling Stone about President Barack Obama and other US officials.