February 10, 2010
Published: 30 Sep 09 07:23 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/22372/20090930/
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Sweden wants to send more troops to Afghanistan after an assessment by the Armed Forces concluded that the current force of 500 soldiers is too small.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Three men have been arrested in Afghanistan on suspicion of being connected to the the death of Swedish soldiers Johan Palmlöv and Gunnar Andersson near Mazar-e Sharif on Sunday. READ (10 COMMENTS) »
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Swedish author and anti-war activist Jan Myrdal has sparked outrage following a public lecture in which he appeared to welcome the killing of Swedish, US and other soldiers. READ »
The number of asylum seekers deported from Sweden rose by 1,300 during 2009, according to new figures from the Swedish Migration Agency. READ »
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Swedish tennis star Robin Söderling showed no signs of the elbow complaint which knocked him out of the Australian Open, firing 26 aces to earn a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Frenchman Florent Serra on Monday in the Rotterdam Open. READ »
A 29-year-old man was shot on Södermalm in Stockholm on Monday night. He was hit in the leg and in the shoulder, but was able to call an ambulance. No one has been arrested as the man refuses to talk to the police. READ (1 COMMENT) »
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totally agree with arslan11
Like it or not, do something or not... that trouble will eventually come here, because we are all "infidels" and our western lifestyles is against some peoples beliefs in in their religion, so they "insist" we change.
In order to effect change in Afghanistan around 100,000 extra troops are needed.
Well Sweden is part of NATO correct? Besides like it was said before, we are all infidels.
Plus why not defeat an enemey that
1. throws acid in girls faces just because they are attending school
2. Doesnt allow women to step outside if no ,ale relative si with them
3. if you convert to christianity you will be jailed or executed (hmm Saudi arabia and many muslim countires do this)
4. Where girls as young as 8 yrs old get married to senior citizens
5. women are treaqted as third class citizens (hmm most muslim countries too)
6. Country which their religions founder married a 6 yr old girl
The Nordic Battle group should be fully equipped with offensive hardware now, as should all other European battle groups.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_Battlegroup
Also reinstate there appropiate coat of arms. They are the military, not political correctness inspectors.
They should be given all the offensive hardware they need for prolonged and intensive combat on ground, in the air and the training to do so.
Alos it needs to be said, back biting from politicans should be dealt with by putting there children in uniform and sending them to combat. They voted for it. They made stupid decisions that led to the problems. There children should be first into any combat zone on all occassions without exception.
The messing around that has been going on in Afghanistan needs to stop. It is a combat situation. The gloves need to come off and there needs to be full scale offensives against the terrorists.
Okay I was getting off topic but Sweden definitely needs this. The North is heating up extremely. Germans are in combat nearly everyday. About time the Swedes and Finns and Norwegians brought more troops to help out. The Swedes should consider sending another combat platoon or company or even some special forces there to help out.
If we were to get rid of caveats and more civilian aid and greater ANA training, we could actually get things going, but of course government corruption is what's really hurting the country. That and the fact that we can't provide jobs/reconstruction if we're constantly fighting.
But any contribution helps. Every country including Sweden should 1st and foremost deploy enough troops to carry out the mission. If Sweden has 500-700 troops, they should have enough air capabilities and a combat company to patrol and enough troops on base to protect themselves and also a PRT or reconstruction to manage on their own. It makes no sense for some countries to deploy troops but not even enough to protect their own base.
Anyone looking for politically correct solutions to this, should be put in uniform and sent to the front line to educate them.
The whole thing has been planned out by ideologues on both sides.
There really needs to be hard headed, military thinking involved.
If we stay, we go in with everything we have, obliterate the Taliban and then start the long process of nation building.
If we are not prepared to go in with everything we have, we need to pull out.
The way the war is being conducted at present is wasting the lives of soldiers and civilians.
Having troop numbers below 150,000 is just murder of the troops. They need large numbers of combat troops, indepth special forces deployment and the political backing to do the job properly.
The Europeans can't expect to simply go into a village with civilians and say 4 troops and have their guns on safety. They have to be armed and prepared for combat at all times. We need to continually attack the Taliban and related groups and than station a platoon or company of ISAF and ANA troops around the residences. So many times in the past we have fought the Taliban and caused them losses in the hundreds and yet we pull out the next day only for them to come back and take over. We have to stay.
Counter-insurgency takes time. The world can't expect for us to win overnight. Training of Afghans will take loads of time. For security, even training them for simple job tasks. They have been in constant war for 25years before we showed up. I believe the international community can win in Afghanistan only if we pony up and go for it.
The Brits, Canadians, Dutchies, Danes, Romanians, Estonians are in combat nearly every hour in the south. It's tough combat. The Americans, French, Polish, Czech and New Zealanders are in constant combat in the East. Yes the level of insurgent attacks has risen in the North but that's due to the Germans never patrolling for several years and allowing them to gain ground. The Germans need to send more combat battalions to stamp it out. It won't be pretty especially for politicans but say the Germans send 1000 combat troops to Kunduz and say they remain there, within a month or 2 that place will be solid under control. Same with the West. We have to seek the enemy and fight him and only then can we start construction. The Afghans must know we're in it for the long haul.
Countries like Spain, Turkey, Greece, Portugal could and should definitely do more. Germany and Italy are finally doing to the best of their abilities considering their recent rules on combat.
And as trite as this sounds, I just wish the war could end, have some peace for a while, or is that too idealistic? And does more troops being sent there really assist that?
The basic problem is like say there are maybe 500 British troops in a city of 25,000. Well half the troops are combat, the others are support. Those in combat can only fight the Taliban to such a degree and can rid Sangin of the Taliban but no inch further, so over time the Taliban can rearm and simply wait to enter Sangin again. More troops would enable the Brits and all coalition countries to continue the fight. The more Afghans trained, the more they can be based in newly captured areas. Plus right behind the soldiers can be engineers building homes/schools/wells and doing great things for the people.
But first you need more troops to fight.
Its strange to see comments about Women being treated as a 3rd grade citizens in Afghanistan where as the same woman is not allowed to cover her head if she wants to in France and being portrayed as a naked show piece for all the 'men' to enjoy. Its strange that a Women gets killed for covering her head right in the middle of a court room in Germany without any hassle and it is not taken as an act of 'insisting' NOT to wear scarf.
Let this be a message to any 'infidel'. You are no one to 'insist' someone not to follow his/her beliefs... If Taliban were BAD in insisting their beliefs, then the United States and its allies are no better either. Everyone knows now why America chose to come to Afghanistan and how... after a 9/11 setup. They're not 'liberating' anyone. Problem is you consider someone liberated when you see them doing just like you do. Stop imposing and live and let live. Be informed that if you destroy people's home, be it an 'infidel' or 'no-infidel'. You will have to face a reaction. A strong bitter reaction.
I am very happy to know that Sweden is willing to share the risk and pain of resolving attacks in the Indian Ocean, Afghanistan or wherever.
Freedom is not free, today you help America and we all hope you never need help but if you ever do, you know we in America will come to your support.
Your actions are far more notable because there is nothing in the horizon that threatens Sweden, unlike Spain and the United Kingdom who have already been attacked.
Also, I believe Swedish people have the attitude and credibility that allows the Swedish Army to help guide Afghanistan to a new future, free of the dispair of fatalism and predestination and a willingness to accept the responsibility and price of helping people in need, regardless nationality. We have something to learn from you. Thank you from one in the US.