The US Troop Withdrawal from Afghanistan - Research Paper Example

The US Troop Withdrawal from Afghanistan Introduction Nearly, over ten years now, the troops of the United States have been in the Afghanistan trying to end the activities of the militants such as the Taliban and the Al Qaeda. This is in regard to the 9/11 attack on the citizens of the united states that were organized and directed by Osama Bin Laden. The U.S. government under the Bush administration reacted to that situation by sending troops to Afghan to fight and eliminate the activities of the Taliban. Other countries such as the United Kingdom also sent their troops to the Middle East to curb the activities of the Taliban because the group had become a threat globally (Lieberthal, 2011). With the killing of the al Qaeda leader, there have been disagreements in the United States on whether the troops should still remain in Afghan or return to the United States. Most citizens within the United States would want to have the troops back in their home country. President Obama is under pressure to bring troops to the United States from Afghanistan since Bin Laden was killed. This write up looks at some of the pros and cons of withdrawing troops from Afghanistan by the Obama administration (Auken, 2011). Pros of withdraw of troops from Afghanistan Withdrawing troops from Afghanistan will ensure that lives are not lost in war. This will ensure that no deaths and injuries of the troops are entirely stopped. Withdrawing troops from Afghanistan will see the United States change its activities of operation from combat to giving support to Afghanistan. Troops withdraw from Afghan ensure that there is a stoppage of spending on the war overseas and as a result, the U.S. would focus on developing its infrastructure. Withdrawing troops from the war will ensure that focus on the war is redirected towards rebuilding the United States and making of innovation within the state. Withdrawing troops will see the end of the war within Afghanistan and subsequent transition that would see the Afghan government taking the lead in protecting its people. Cons of withdraw of troops from Afghanistan The withdrawal of American troops from Afghan will allow militants such as the Al Qaeda and the Taliban take over Afghanistan because of the vacuum created by the leaving troops. Removing American troops from the Afghanistan will facilitate slaughter of innocent lives and increase global insecurity. By 2014, the state of Afghanistan will not be safe meaning the efforts of those who died and got injured during the war would be in vain. Lives have already been lost and abandon the country before stability is achieved would be signs of failure. Withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Afghanistan will see other countries such as France and the UK may follow it by removing their troops from Afghanistan. Removing troops from Afghan will require that the Afghan government takes lead in protecting its mountains and its citizens from the militants, a situation they are not prepared to do by 2014. Discussion Removing troops from Afghan will have many advantages to the troops, the citizen of the U.S and the country at large. There will be stoppage of loss of lives and injuries inflicted of troops at war. For instance, since the war started about 1500 American soldiers have died, and another 12000 got injured. Withdrawing the troops will see the end of these miseries that targeted the troops. The American government has been associated with giving support and aid to various countries of the world; stopping the war would make facilitate the change of the activities of the U.S. from combat to support (Crane, 2012). According to Obama, the United States will have a chance to support activities and programs aimed at the development within Afghanistan. Instead of directing its resources to fighting, it will channel them towards development programs within Afghanistan. Research has shown that the cost of the war has outweighed the benefits of the same war. For instance, since the war started, about $440 billion has been used in activities related to the war. This amount of money accompanied by the recent recession has made the country go into financial crisis. Stopping the war will ensure that funds allocated towards the war are channeled to programs aimed at rebuilding infrastructure within the United States (Herbert, 2012). Most Americans have opposed the war, and they would want to see their troops back home. In addition to this, they support activities that would see the recovery of the economy. Therefore, stopping the war would see rebuilding of the United States in terms of innovations and creation of job opportunities (Duell, 2012). In addition to this, government's support will be redirected from war to nation building that would encompass establishment of industries. Moreover, withdrawing troops will see Afghan government taking up the lead in protecting its citizens. There are also disadvantages associated with withdraw of troops from the state of Afghanistan. For instance, immature withdrawal of the troops will see the militants fill the vacuum created within Afghan. This would see the flourishing of other leaders of the militants groups such as Al Qaeda and Taliban (Smith, 2011). The result of their flourishing is the takeover of the government and the establishment of subsequent training facilities for these dangerous groups. In addition to takeover of the government, innocent lives will be loss because of the activities of the militants. Moreover, global insecurity will increase because militants will have amble time to train, plan and execute their plans in different parts of the continents. The common targets will be the US and close allies such as the UK and France. By withdrawing from Afghan immaturely, the effort of those who have died and those who have gotten injuries would be seen as being futile. The mission of the United States within the Afghan was to stop the activities of the militants and by leaving by 2014, would mean that their mission is not accomplished. This is because Afghan will not be safe by then and would still need the help of international troops. In addition to this, the Afghan government will be forced to take the lead in protecting its citizens and mountains from the militant groups, a thing that would prove difficult for them (Stern, 2012). The other effect associated with withdrawal will be actions of the other countries that have their troops within the country. For example, the United Kingdom will also be forced to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan. My opinion is that, the united states of American should go on with its proposed plans to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan as proposed by president Obama. This will stop the killings that have been a common thing within the state of Afghan. Killing is aggravated by the activities of suicide bombers that are protesting the activities of the foreigners; Americans and Britons (Carter, 2012). Therefore, a strategy should be formed on how the Afghan government will be involved in protecting its people. For instance, the militants may stop their activities once their enemies have left the country. Moreover, there will be an end to the war and the level of lives loss will drastically go down. In addition, the troops will not be subjected to injuries and pain by activities of the war. Stopping the war by removing troops from Afghan will stop loss of lives; a thing that has been occurring for the past 10 years. Obama is correct because withdrawal will end infliction of suffering and injuries on the innocent persons within the state of Afghanistan. Therefore, strategies should be laid down on how to train the local troops within the state of Afghan and give them more leading roles than those that they currently have. In addition to this, the U.S. will change its combat related activities to support activities. Such an action will serve to create strong relationships between the two countries. According to Obama, withdrawing troops from Afghan will see the cut down of expenses incurred in the war. This will ensure that the country diverts its focus on rebuilding its infrastructure and industries (Burns, 2012).The action above will also lead to innovations within the country that will serve to create more job opportunities for its citizens. The United States will be able to focus on state building activities and reduce its spending on war related activities. Withdrawing the troops will also be in line with most Americans that oppose the war and are concerned with economic development (Gelb, 2012). Therefore, president Obama is correct in regard to the planned withdrawal from Afghan. Works Cited Auken, Bill. US generals balk at Obama’s Afghanistan withdrawal plan. Wsws.org. December 2011. Web. 19 March, 2012. Available at: Burns, Robert. Panetta awaiting plans on Afghan drawdown. Navytimes.com 2012 Web.19 March 2012. Available at: < http://www.navytimes.com/news/2012/03/ap-afghanistan-leon-panetta-awaiting-plans-drawdown-031312/ > Carter, Chelsea. US soldiers just back from Iraq get new orders: Afghanistan. Sott.net. 2011 Web. March 2012. Available at: < http://www.sott.net/articles/show/239233-Welcome-Home-US-Soldiers-just-back-from-Iraq-get-new-orders-Afghanistan > Crane, Jonathan. Obama unveils US troop withdrawals. France24.com. 2011 Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: < http://www.france24.com/en/20110623-afghan-war-tide-receding-obama-speech- unveils-troop-withdrawals > Duell, Mark.’ We’ve turned a corner’: Obama defends plan to bring home over 30, 000 troops after defense chief labels it risky and aggressive. Dailymail.co.uk. June 2011 Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: Gelb, Leslie. Why Obama won’t speed US troop withdrawal in Afghanistan.thedailybeast.com. 2012. Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: < http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/18/why-obama-won-t-speed-u-s-troop-withdrawal-in-afghanistan.html> Herbert, Douglas. France to begin Afghan withdrawal by end of 2012. France24.com. 2011 Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: < http://www.france24.com/en/20110712-france-withdraw-quarter-troops-afghanistan-2012-sarkozy > Lieberthal, Kenneth. The American Pivot to Asia. Foreignpolicy.com. December 2011 Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: Smith, Ethel. Should the US pull troops out of Afghanistan? Helium.com. June 2011 Web. 19 March 2012. Available at: Stern, Andrew. US NATO ambassador says Afghan policy intact.mobygroup.com.2012 Web. 19 March, 2012. Available at: < http://mobygroup.com/moby-media-update/253-mmu-afghanistan-sets-auction-to-lure-bidders-for-oil-exploration-02-march-2012 > Read More