AFGHANISTAN 2.0: "Graveyard of Empires" presented by #OTUmedia and www.ybfperspectives.com

History will remember Afghanistan as the “Graveyard of Empires”. George Galloway, former British MP and host of M.O.A.T. (Mother Of All Talkshows) is quoted saying “If Alexander the Great failed to conquer Afghanistan then so surely would Donald Trump.”

Most Americans and Oklahomans know next to nothing about this beautiful, mountainous, and now once again Islamic, nation state. Remember...

Those who are ignorant of history are doomed to repeat it.

Today at #OTUmedia, the Bunker crew breaks down the Afghan debacle. Let’s learn about it together and #LetThePeopleDecide.

Afghanistan, where is it?

Why are we in Afghanistan?

Who else is in Afghanistan?

How long have we been there?

Like most Americans, you might be under the impression that Afghanistan is in the Middle-East, due to the United States’ war on terror since 2001. Afghanistan is actually in Southern Asia, sharing borders with not only Iran and China, but Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. The high Hindu Kush Mountains stretch along Afghanistan's eastern border and cover much of the country.

An artificial creation of the British, Afghanistan's borders are little more than lines on a map to its various ethnic groups and decentralized tribes. In all, what is known to the west as Afghanistan covers 252,000 mi.² For some perspective let's take a look at a scaled comparison between Afghanistan and Oklahoma.

Oklahoma, in all, covers 69,899 mi.² So, Afghanistan is only approximately 3.5 times the size of our state.

Pay attention and stay tuned as #OTUmedia answers all the questions Americans are asking about Afghanistan.

Over the last 50 years, Afghanistan has seen boots on the ground from almost every modern military on the planet. The Soviet Union, the British, Americans, French, Australian, German, Italian, Polish and soldiers from around 20 other NATO countries have spent the last half century fighting and dying in Afghanistan.

Almost all of the European countries operating in Afghanistan finished complete withdraws in early 2021.

The Taliban have established a perimeter around the airport in Kabul, separating approximately 15,000 Americans and 5,000 other foreign nationals from their only hope for escape from Afghanistan.

The US State Department is insisting that their people need to make it to the airport for assistance from the military, but emphasize that they can not guarantee safe passage. France and the United Kingdom are currently deploying their remaining special operations units to extract stranded citizens from Kabul City to the airport.

The Taliban operate as part of a global Transnational Islamic Terror Network (T.I.T.N). They are affiliated with Al Qaeda, Al Nusra, ISIS and other Wahhabi, extremist elements of Sharia Islam. The vast swaths of open, often isolated or highly contested territory in Afghanistan make perfect breeding grounds for international criminal and terror organizations.

The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan began in 1979 when communist forces sought to cauterize an Afghan revolution by installing a Soviet puppet regime. This attempted occupation by the USSR lasted nine years with the last Soviet troops withdrawing on January 15 of 1989. During this time “moderate” Afghan rebels, known as Mujahedin or Taliban were trained and equipped by US intelligence services, such as the C.I.A., to harass their Soviet occupiers.

Before America and the Russians, the British failed miserably in three separate Afghan campaigns. Even Alexander the Great could not conquer this mountainous territory now known to the Western world as Afghanistan.

The USA is now seemingly on course to join the USSR, and others in the “Graveyard of Empires”, Afghanistan.

The United States originally invaded Afghanistan in 2001 after Al Qaeda terrorists attacked the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington D.C. using three commandeered commercial airliners. A fourth jet was also hijacked, but did not reach it’s intended target thanks to the bravery of passengers on board. 3000 people lost their lives on September 11, 2001 in the worst terror attack in American history.

Although the terrorist group Al-Qaeda is based in Afghanistan, none of the 20 terrorists who perpetrated the 9/11 attacks were from Afghanistan. Intelligence suggests two of the attackers may have gone through Afghanistan on their way to the United States.

Claiming authority granted under the War Powers Act and supported by a Joint Resolution signed into law by his own Administration, President George W. Bush declared a global war on terror. He threatened to occupy Afghanistan and dismantle the Taliban’s network unless Al Qaeda was exiled and bin Laden handed over to American troops. The Taliban refused and American bombers began hitting Al Qaeda and Taliban targets in Afghanistan on October 7, 2001.

Operation Enduring Freedom had begun.

Ground troops would follow 12 days later and have been there for 20 years since.

Why are we leaving now?

A better question would be: “Why have we stayed so long?” America has been in Afghanistan for decades under the pretense of a “Global War on Terror”. After the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, Taliban leaders provided comfort and shelter for Al-Qaeda terrorists. As part of a Transnational Islamic Terror Network (T.I.T.N) the Taliban serve as a dependable safe haven, as well as recruit and provide training for several international terror organizations. While many people know these pretexts for NATO’s extended presence in Afghanistan to be mostly political, few understand the real reasons so much American blood and treasure has been spent there.

The T.A.P.I. (Turkmenistan . Afghanistan . Pakistan . India) Pipeline.

As part of their ongoing trade war with the U.S. and in a bid to undercut India’s reliance on other regional energy exporters, Iran struck a deal to pump oil and natural gas to Delhi at below bottom dollar prices. Together, along-side several US Taxpayer funded nuclear reactors, the T.A.P.I. Pipeline allowed US officials to match Tehran’s offer and prevent the construction of an Islamic Pipeline from Iran, through Pakistan, to India.

Opium.

Afghan exports account for 80-90% of the world’s illicit opium supply. The US military and private western contractors have regularly been tasked with protecting these opium operations under the guise of fighting international terror.

Bagram Airbase.

One hour North of Kabul, Bagram Airbase may be the biggest tactical concession made by the US in their withdraw from Afghanistan. Originally established by the Soviet Army in the 1950’s, the now abandoned “Billion Dollar Base” was an impregnable fortress just 400 miles from China to it’s East and 500 miles from Iran to it’s West; two of America’s most powerful adversaries.

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