So after 10 years and many deaths we are talking to the Taliban.

[Gromit]

// The US and other foreign powers are engaged in preliminary talks with the Taliban about a possible settlement to the war in Afghanistan, the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, has said. It is the first official confirmation of US involvement in such negotiations. //

Was it all worth it?

[anotheoldgit]

Link please.

[Gromit]

It was from the BBC, but you might prefer a DM link

http://www.dailymail....an-Karzai-claims.html

[anotheoldgit]

Isn't that you who prefers to use the Daily Mail Gromit, but maybe for some reason this time, you felt someone might take you to task, for using it yet again?

Unlike myself who exercises my freedom to use any newspaper, which gets my point across.

http://www.telegraph....-Karzai-confirms.html

http://www.guardian.c...-talks-taliban-karzai

http://www.independen...s-karzai-2299515.html

[Gromit]

I am greatly pleased that our campaign for you to broaden your source material is bearing fruit - well done, you will not regret it.

And the matter of 10 years wasted on a war?

[Sqad]

Gromit....funny old world......but what has changed?

All the innocent people killed in Northern Ireland, soldiers on both sides and after years of conflict the advisories .Gerry Adams , Martin McGuinnes, Danny Morrison are all respected members of the Stormont Parliament and we are talking to them.

[anotheoldgit]

/// And the matter of 10 years wasted on a war? ///

Too many lives wasted, and too many resources wasted etc.

When our troops and our resources could be better employed in rooting out the terrorist in our own lands.

[sandyRoe]

It will be a sad day when troops are deployed on UK mainland streets. Whatever else they may be, they're not exactly diplomatic.

[bazwillrun]

Get our troops out and back asap, they should never have been sent on such a lost cause as Afghanistshitan.

Place always was a schitthole and always will be, let them get on with running their affairs how they want.

We have money and weapons but they have time, they will just sit it out until we have all gone and it will gradually, sooner rather than later, be business as usual for the Toiletban and the medieval lifestyle thew want everybody to adhere to ..except themselves that it.

The mere fact if its true, of us talking to them is a victory in their eyes, trouble is they are correct

[bazwillrun]

bluddy typos! they not thew, and that is not that it

[emmie]

That is not a surprise, we have had to talk with endless terrorists to broker some sort of peace deals, in Ireland amongst others, and this has to come about, otherwise we are just going to go on and on, and no one wins.

[Zeuhl]

There never is a military 'solution'.

In all conflicts, at some point, the politicians have to complete the resolution.

[emmie]

not quite true, as in WW2, that was a military solution, and one that cost over 90 million lives. Churchill, Eisenhower, Stalin may have sat around and debated who got the spoils, but it wasn't a political solution, at least thats not how i see it. Dropping fat boy on Hiroshima wasn't a political solution, they had tried that, it didn't work.

[Zeuhl]

em true

but when the shooting stopped the politicos stepped in.

they sat down with the germans to identify war criminals and begin the process of rebuilding

Fat Boy was immediately followed by diplomatic dealings re surrender, status of the emperor, repatriation, occupied territories etc etc
.

[Old_Geezer]

If you can not wipe out your enemy, then you have to reach an agreement or hostilities will carry on in perpetuity.

[bednobs]

i do not see what the problem is - would you perhaps prefer us to carry on sending troops there ad infinitum? Surely any solutiod one/