South Asia Security Monitor: No. 223

December 8:

The International Council on Security and Development (ICOS) has painted a bleak picture of Afghanistan, claiming that the Taliban now control roughly three-quarters of the country. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Paris based think tank, which has a permanent outpost in Afghanistan, recently produced a report detailing the resurgence of Taliban forces and their recent encirclement of Kabul. The Obama administration has stated that it plans to raise U.S. troop levels by an additional 20,000 in 2009 to reduce the Taliban footprint.


December 11:

The Six Party Talks have taken another hiatus, after four days of discussion. U.S. envoy Christopher Hill left the DPRK unsuccessful in his latest attempt to convince Pyongyang to allow international inspectors to collect samples at North Korean nuclear facilities. According to the Los Angeles Times, Hill did not elaborate on the impasse, only stating there are some differences which must be overcome before reaching an agreement.


December 12:

The Times of London reports that Western military shipments in Afghanistan may be inadvertently bolstering the Taliban. That is because, according to the paper, supplies intended for NATO forces must travel through segments of Taliban-controlled territory in Afghanistan or Pakistan if they cannot be flown in. The multinational companies that provide these supplies often subcontract to local shipping companies - who in turn hire Taliban militants to ensure safe passage. NATO, however, doesn’t seem overly concerned by the situation. Lieutenant-Commander James Gater, a spokesman for NATO forces in Afghanistan, has gone on record as saying that “Such companies are free to subcontract to whomsoever they wish.”


December 13:

Philippine security forces have averted a bombing attack by the radical Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The al-Qaeda linked terrorist group planned on bombing several Philippine cities, including the nation’s capital, Manila. The China Post reports that security forces arrested Guiamaludin Edsrafil, a terrorist cell member of MILF’s Special Operations Group, as part of a recent raid against the militant outfit.


December 16:

As the situation worsens in Afghanistan, the West is reportedly considering yet another alternative to turn the tide of the war. U.S. and NATO forces now aim to create a divide between the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, and to separate the moderates from the true radicals, as a way of tempering the insurgency. Afghan experts cited by the Christian Science Monitor claim that most Taliban fighters are at war due to “local grievances, tribal rivalries, and poor economic conditions,” while al-Qaeda militants are driven by an “ideological war against the west.” Therefore, some believe that it may be possible to exploit these differences to divide the Afghan insurgency. One proposal in this vein, the paper reports, envisions a promise to Taliban militants of future jobs in the Afghan government as a way to bring them into the fold.