Just posted the following comment on the subject BBC’s Have Your Say:
In reading through many comments, I was surprised to find little support for the NATO mission in Afghanistan (AF). Equally surprising was some of the supporting minority’s linking the mission with winning common Afghans over from the Taliban, and, incredibly, reducing opium production. The main points to keep in mind are: 1) AQ were more successful when they had a haven (AF); 2) no regime (whatever their principles) should see hosting AQ as fine — think North Waziristan now, as we help AF.
Most assuredly a simplification — darn character limit — and, particularly in the case of the first point, debatable: AQ-inspired success continued after September 2001, but one wonders whether the inspiration would peter out, were AQ core unable to comfortably operate anywhere at the same time as contravening messages were promulgated (the latter being something we need to do more of, incidentally).
