Afghanistan Times
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has recently decided to deploy more troops in Afghanistan. The NATO secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg announced in Brussels that so far 15 member countries have showed readiness to send additional forces to the war-torn country. He said that totally 3,000 troops would be stationed here to what called “train and advise” the 35,000-strong security forces of Afghanistan, but did not mention which nations would contribute to the new mission.
The number is apart from the expected 4,000 soldiers that the United States plans to send to the country. Currently, there are 4,800 US soldiers and about 6,600 from its other NATO allies in Afghanistan, mostly engaged in training and advising the Afghan troops after the NATO’s combat mission was over at the end of 2014.
Obviously, sending more troops will not help the situation get improved as the people of Afghanistan saw in the past 16 years. The situation did not improve and even became worse during the period when much more soldiers from the United States and other NATO countries were involved in the war against Taliban, al-Qaeda, Haqqani network and other armed opposition groups. Both Afghan and foreign soldiers became the victim of the “war on terror”, while the roots of terrorism was not found in Afghanistan.
The Afghan people are not terrorists and are not harboring terrorism in their homes and villages and this fact is now realized by the world citizens.
The sanctuary of terrorists, from which not only Afghanistan, but the world is unsafe was and, is beyond the borders of Afghanistan.
Sending more troops and continuing the war in a country already hit by war does not treat any wound and will only help more bloodshed extend and take the opportunity of building a calm future from the younger generation of Afghans.
Let’s acknowledge that what was done in the past in Afghanistan was nothing but a big mistake. Now, let’s realize that Afghanistan has been used as a battlefield among different powers and a laboratory where modern and sophisticated weapons were tested.
Now, the international community should help Afghan people by cutting the roots of terrorism outside the border of Afghanistan. Otherwise, only more people will be killed, more money will be spent uselessly and above all, more time will be used.
