Afghan War to Continue

The Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have always been very different wars. Immediately following 9/11 the US and UK (later joined by NATO and other allies) invaded Afghanistan to drive out the Al-Qaeda supporting Taliban. The war had strong international support, even amongst those countries who did not participate. Fast forward two years and the Iraq War is underway, but unlike Afghanistan it is much more contentious. The reason Britain and American want to go to war in Iraq is based on evidence that the country is trying to get weapons of mass destruction. That evidence was called into question by the international community which is unsure as to the authenticity of the evidence. Soon after the invasion, it is discovered that Iraq didn’t have any weapons of mass destruction and that most of the ‘evidence’ was simply false.

Needless to say the war based on a lie rapidly became unpopular and eventually all allied troops left Iraq by 2012. On the other hand Afghanistan is still ongoing and it looks like there will be a Western presence in Afghanistan for at least another decade. NBC News managed to get hold of a draft document of an agreement between the American and Afghan governments whereby troops would continue to reside inside the country until at least 2024! Although the war will officially end next year it will not be the end of a Western presence in Afghanistan.