Do you suppose the Trump/Russia/United Arab Emirates/Prince meeting in
the Seychelles may have concerned taking the natural resources out of Afghanistan?
What do you think?
Russia would be the transportation link, the way to get the materials out of Afghanistan. The United Emirates and may I also mention Saudi Arabia would be helpful as investors and as Muslim intermediaries with the Muslim majorities in Afghanistan.
Again, what do you think?
Erik Prince thinks he can turn around the war in Afghanistan, and he’s got a PowerPoint deck to explain the whole thing. The Blackwater founder brought it with him to the Corner Bakery on North Capitol Street in Washington last Thursday, printed out and placed in a presentation binder. He’s been shopping it around D.C. And on Friday, when President Trump huddles with his advisers at Camp David to plot a way forward, it will be in the mix.
The 16-year-old war in Afghanistan has become a central point of conflict in the White House as the administration passes the half-year mark without having settled on a new strategy. Trump has so far rejected the proposals brought to his desk. The troop increases favored by his generals, Defense Secretary James Mattis and National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, are strongly opposed by his (now-former) chief strategist, Steve Bannon, and the president himself is skeptical of such approaches.
The “America First” ethos on which Trump campaigned is bumping up against the approach of his military brass. But an answer may finally be at hand. Trump and top administration officials will gather at Camp David on Friday to discuss South Asia strategy. Vice President Pence is even cutting his Latin America trip short to join the talks.
Related Story
A U.S. Marine shakes hand with Afghan National Army soldiers.
America Needs to Stay in Afghanistan
But this is not just an argument between warring elements within the administration. Plans to privatize the war proposed by two businessmen with ties to the White House have become a linchpin of the debate. Prince is proposing to send private contractors to Afghanistan instead of U.S. troops, and have the entire operation overseen by a “viceroy.” The billionaire investor Stephen Feinberg has also submitted a proposal using contractors. Both have met with top administration officials on the matter. Their involvement was first reported by The New York Times last month. In recent weeks, their lobbying effort has ramped up, as Trump signals he is nearing a decision. And Trump is said to favor using at least some of Prince and Feinberg’s proposals.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/08/afghanistan-camp-david/537324/
Remember. Russia went into Afghanistan before the US did.
