Veterans - thank you

aircooled said:

Yup, just a giant circle back to the early 90's.  A twist may be that China has taken interest in their rare earth minerals and what happens when they get between the two groups....

....China... your turn.

I wonder what China's attitude will be to their opium production.  China has a very negative view on such things, for very valid historical reasons. Of course China has never had an issue selling and shipping misery to other countries (see Fentanyl production).

China isn't interested in spreading democracy or nation building. In Africa they've already added infrastructure like roads and railways for mining rights. They'll probably do the same there.

Was Afghanistan really about nation building?

I realize the goals were not well defined, but it always seemed to me that the larger priority was pushing back in a region that was a breeding ground for terrorist activity. 
 

I never thought we actually cared about spreading democracy or nation building (other than the wishful ancillary benefit of perhaps discouraging anti-US terrorist growth in the region)

j_tso said:

aircooled said:

Yup, just a giant circle back to the early 90's.  A twist may be that China has taken interest in their rare earth minerals and what happens when they get between the two groups....

....China... your turn.

I wonder what China's attitude will be to their opium production.  China has a very negative view on such things, for very valid historical reasons. Of course China has never had an issue selling and shipping misery to other countries (see Fentanyl production).

China isn't interested in spreading democracy or nation building. In Africa they've already added infrastructure like roads and railways for mining rights. They'll probably do the same there.

I did not mean to imply any sort of nation building, just exploitation.  If they have mining operations there and they are paying the Taliban or NA (I think most of the minerals are in the mountains?) that operation become a nice target for the other side... oops your "involved".... send in troops to defend? (one foot in the mud)....

Of course there is the lovely aspect of the Taliban/Al Queda) putting terrorist training camps right next to the mines (see Hezbola playbook) and someone needs to bomb those camps...

SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:

Was Afghanistan really about nation building?...

I don't really think so either.  Maybe as a potential side affect?

The primary goal for the last 10 years or so seemed to be to try and get them to the point that they can defend themselves from the Taliban (insert massive number of complications here).

Maybe the best thing the occupation did there was to provide a period of reasonable eduction / world information (for some?).  Those people may become interested in a state (or province) without the Taliban and want to do something about it (assuming their heads remain attached of course). Who knows.