McCain to White House: Get a strategy for Afghanistan or Congress will step in

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Roji Kurd: Worried by the Trump administration’s delay in announcing a military strategy for the war in Afghanistan, Sen. John McCain said Thursday he’ll try to force the debate on Capitol Hill, offering his own plan that would force a troop increase.

The Arizona Republican, who is also chairman of the Armed Services Committee, didn’t lay out a number in the legislation but said more U.S. counterterrorism forces should be deployed, and given independent authority to strike targets of the Taliban, al Qaeda or other terrorist groups.

Mr. McCain also said the U.S should secure a long-term agreement with Afghanistan for an “enduring” military presence there, and should begin to impose penalties on neighboring Pakistan as punishment for that country’s harboring of insurgents and terrorists.

His plan comes at a time when the Trump White House is driven by debate over what to do in the war-torn nation, which continues to backslide on a host of security yardsticks.

Mr. McCain said he’s been disappointed by both President Barack Obama and President Trump, and delivered a spanking to them both.

“America is adrift in Afghanistan,” he said. “President Obama’s ‘don’t lose’ strategy has put us on a path to achieving the opposite result. Now, nearly seven months into President Trump’s administration, we’ve had no strategy at all as conditions on the ground have steadily worsened. The thousands of Americans putting their lives on the line in Afghanistan deserve better from their commander-in-chief.”

After nearly 16 years of war, we are at a stalemate in Afghanistan. Worse, we have no strategy to end that stalemate and achieve victory,” the Arizona Republican, who heads the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement Monday. “The recent deaths of three brave American soldiers underscore the urgency for a new strategy to turn the situation around in Afghanistan.”

Earlier this month, three U.S. soldiers were killed when an Afghan army soldier opened fire on U.S. service members. Over the weekend, there was another insider attack that wounded seven American soldiers.

“We cannot keep going like this. If the administration fails to develop a strategy for success, Congress will need to play a greater role,” he continued.

McCain’s call comes just days after the Associated Press reported that nearly 4,000 additional troops would be sent to Afghanistan after the president gave Defense Secretary Jim Mattis the authority to determine troop levels

The Senate is poised to take up the annual defense policy bill when it returns from summer vacation, and Mr. McCain, as committee chairman, will manage the debate, giving him the chance to force his amendment to a vote.

A former Navy pilot who was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Vietnam, Mr. McCain has long been one of Capitol Hill’s foremost defense hawks. He pushed the troop surge strategy under President George W. Bush that helped stabilize Iraq in the latter part of the last decade, before the rise of the Islamic State under Mr. Obama sent the country spiraling again.

Mr. McCain said the U.S. is “losing” right now in Afghanistan and must set strategic goals and revamp tactics to regain the upper hand.

 

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