Issue 288 (8) Asian Tribune August 27, 2021EditorialStranded in KabulIT was at the fag end of a pressconference by US President JoeBiden that the White House’s narrativeabout the unexpected collapse ofthe Afghan army having caught theAmericans unawares came apart. Inthe process, the US may have put atrisk the lives of over 10,000 of its citizensand loyal Afghans, besides nationalsof other countries, including India.Replying to a question on whetherthe US will be able to get all its citizensout of Afghanistan, Biden said,‘We’ve been in constant contact withthe Taliban leadership on the ground.’It was then that an unscripted questionrang out: ‘Why do you continue totrust the Taliban, Mr President?’ Bidenturned his back to the podium and didnot reply.The US had sounded the deathknell for the democratically elected Afghangovernment after the Doha talkswith the Taliban. The Kabul dispensation,on life support from the West, wasmade to look further emasculated bythe Americans biting the ISI bait of anengagement with the Taliban. For allthe satellites in the sky and watcherson the ground, including militias run bythe CIA, the Americans seemed tohave no inkling of the collapse of thewill of the Afghan army or the settingup of well-oiled supply lines from Pakistanthat sustained the Taliban advance.There are conspiracy theoriesabout how the Americans had actuallywilled a Taliban takeover, which is whythe Afghan army folded up the way itdid. The truth may never be revealed.But what is known is that US Secretaryof State Antony Blinken had tothank, at the last count, a dozen countries,including bête noire China, forthe safe transit of Americans and otherforeign nationals. Meanwhile, theTaliban are dismantling abandonedUS military equipment and transportingit to Pakistan, undoubtedly for onwardtransmission to China. The UShas not just hurt itself by accepting theassurances from the Taliban and theISI; it has ruined the results of assiduousdevelopmental work by countriessuch as India, besides leaving theircitizens in Afghanistan in peril.Yash SharmaEditorial TeamProf . Harjinder Walia,Ph.D (Journalism)Former Head of JournalismPunjabi Universty Patiala. (Punjab) IndiaPatronYash Sharma,M.Sc (Hons), DMMPublisher & Editor in Chief780-200-0246Sat Paul KaushalAssociate Editor, Calgary403 903 8500Raghbir BilaspuriBureau Chief ( Punjabi)Sunny SharmaBureau Chief (English)Atul Seth, CPA,CGAFinancial & Management ConsultantTejinder Singh BhatejaAdvisor(Marketing)587 889 2340English PageThe never-ending devastation of AFFarm loan waiver : An unhealthy practiceAnita SharmaM.A.(Hindi)Bureau Chief (Hindi)www.asiantribune.ca. Also, follow us on twitter @AsianTribuneEdm
English PageIssue 288 (9) Asian Tribune August 27, 2021Sales Managerwww.asiantribune.ca. Also, follow us on twitter @AsianTribuneEdm