US ‘will be fighting Taliban for decades’

AFGHANISTAN: American forces are set to stay in Afghanistan for decades after an increase in troop numbers, a former commander of US and Nato troops in the country has predicted.

General David Petraeus, one of the best-known commanders of his generation and a former director of the CIA, pointed to the presence of US forces in South Korea ever since the Korean war and in Europe during the Cold War.

‘‘The analogy with Afghanistan isn’t perfect given that is a true shooting war, but when we have had significant national interests at stake we have sustained efforts, and I think that is why a sustained commitment is important here but also why that has to be sustainable,’’ he told The Times.

He ‘‘wouldn’t hazard a prediction’’ on the length of time that US and other Nato forces would be in Afghanistan, but indicated that the 16-year war, America’s longest, was set to last. ‘‘This is not the fight of a decade, much less a few years,’’ he said. ’’We are engaged in a generational struggle. That is why we need sustained commitments that are sustainable. I believe that this is a sustainable sustained commitment.’’

Petraeus, 64, a one-time candidate for secretary of state, declined to say whether President Donald Trump or members of the administration, including LieutenantGeneral HR McMaster, the national security adviser, who he knows well, had sought his opinion in devising their strategy for Afghanistan and the rest of south Asia that was unveiled last week. However, he was supportive of the policy, which is expected to mean an additional 3900 American forces will be sent.

A second former US military chief said that the increase would be ‘‘helpful but not decisive’’. General Jack Keane, who turned down the chance to serve as Trump’s secretary of defence for family reasons, said tens of thousands of troops were required to defeat the Taliban, but he realised there was no longer any support in Congress for military action on such a scale.

Trump’s goals in Afghanistan appear to be less ambitious than those of his predecessors, General Keane said. The president aims to stop the Taliban from overthrowing the Afghan government, not to defeat them. In time it is hoped that political reconciliation could be achieved with the insurgents.

There are already more than 12,000 Nato-led troops, more than half of them American, in Afghanistan helping to train and advise the Afghan security forces. A separate counterterrorism mission of up to 2000 US special forces as well as elite British and other troops is focused on al Qaeda, Islamic State and the Taliban.

Petraeus, who is credited with quelling a bloody insurgency in Iraq that followed the US-led invasion, welcomed the absence of any ‘‘artificial deadline’’ for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. He directed veiled criticism towards the previous Obama administration for constraining commanders, including him, by setting exit timelines. ‘‘I applaud the commitment to conditions-based decision making,’’ he said.

The boost in numbers will enable Nato-led forces to reassert their presence lower down the Afghan chain of command, with officers offering more training and advice to counterparts who are closer to the frontline rather than focusing their efforts at the corps and divisional level. It could also mean more aircraft providing surveillance and reconnaissance as well as a greater capacity to launch airstrikes.

Petraeus said he was confident Britain and other Nato allies involved in the Resolute Support train and advise mission would follow the US lead by increasing troops. The required increase is thought to be up to 2500 military personnel.

He would not be drawn, however, on whether a British plan just to add a further 85 troops, including special forces, on top of its 500-strong presence was adequate. ‘‘I think at the end of the day we will see Nato countries come through,’’ he said.

When judging the utility of continuing the campaign, which has cost the lives of more than 2400 US military personnel, the former commander said it had prevented al Qaeda from launching another September 11-style attack from the country. ‘‘That remains a national security priority,’’ he said.

The US presence in Afghanistan also secures a launchpad for counterterrorism operations across the region, such as the raid into Pakistan that killed Osama Bin Laden, he said.

Petraeus said the security situation in Afghanistan was ‘‘as a Brit would say, fraught’’ less than three years after Nato declared an end to combat operations.

Yesterday, the funeral took place of the latest American serviceman killed in Afghanistan. Staff Sergeant Aaron Butler, a member of the Green Beret special forces, died in an explosion in Nangarhar province. - The Times