Thesis: The U.S. should send more troops to Afghanistan because the Taliban effort is growing, and with more troops, the U.S. objectives can be completed faster and more efficiently so that the U.S. can withdraw sooner.
1) There are too few troops to stop the Taliban's expansion that occurred when the U.S. shifted their attention to Iraq, and Kilcullen feels that the U.S. should put more troops in to prevent even more of Afghanistan from going under Taliban control.
2) Kilcullen's position also focuses on protecting the Afghan civilians from Taliban violence and intimidation, as well as strengthening Pakistanis from the Taliban and Al Qaeda members that seek refuge in their country.
3) Finally, the U.S. will work in the Afghan community, helping to train and work alongside the Afghan army and police to increase public safety because Kilcullen thinks the problem in Afghanistan cannot be solved solely by military force.
Position 2: Shift the military effort to Pakistan instead of Afghanistan (Michael A. Cohen and Parag Khanna)
Thesis: Pakistan is a greater threat than Afghanistan and if the U.S. shifted their efforts to defeating the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the war could be ended sooner.
1) Because the U.S. has strong relations with and better intelligence from the Pakistan army, they could more easily learn about the whereabouts of Taliban and Al Qaeda and improve the accuracy of their air/drone attacks and faster complete their goal in Central Asia.
2) The U.S. should strengthen Pakistan's armed forces and government because they need help establishing stability in the country's tribal areas.
3) Finally, the U.S. wants to stop Al Qaeda and the Taliban from crossing the Afghanistan/Pakistan border and switching their hiding spots from these countries. By keeping them in one area, the U.S. can defeat them more easily.
Position 3: Focus on regional negotiations instead of a military solution (Tariq Ali)
Thesis: The U.S. should stop their military efforts towards Afghanistan and allow other countries in the area to protect Afghanistan.
1) The U.S. training of the local police and armed forces has caused these groups to be more voracious towards their enforcement, which has caused the communities to be antagonized by these forces.
2) The drone attacks on Afghanistan are counter productive. These bombings have resulted in the casualties of many Afghan citizens, which has made other citizens resent the U.S. and look to a group such as the Taliban for support and similar ideals.
3) Finally, Ali believes that the problem cannot be solved through military attacks, but rather through political negotiation. He thinks that a "regional pact" should be made amongst countries such as Pakistan, Iran, India, Russia, and possibly China could guarantee and support a functioning government without U.S. involvement.
Position 4; Withdraw U.S. and Nato troops from Afghanistan (George Will)
Thesis: The U.S. objectives will not be met in Afghanistan and therefore they should withdraw all troops.
1) The U.S. military efforts should not be based in Afghanistan, but offshore using drones, missiles, air strikes and intelligence because the real threat is not Afghanistan, but Pakistan.
2) To effectively stop Taliban violence and attacks, there would need to be hundreds of thousands of troops; a pricy and sacrificial endeavor. The Taliban can also go into hiding, and emerge to recruit even more people to increase their support. This is why Will believes the troops should leave- he feels staying in Afghanistan has not made any progress.
3) Finally, Will thinks that job programs and local government services should be set up because it would distract people from the Taliban and make it so civilians to not want to support the Taliban anymore.
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