• CyborgMarx [any, any]@hexbear.net
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    2 days ago

    The Afghans could very well pull a major upset and penetrate deep into Pakistan, evicting the Pakistani army from large swathes of the western regions. The Taliban has had five years to build on the vast surpluses of equipment the US left behind, they have tens of thousands of soldiers with decades of combat experience, they know the mountains and the towns, the locals are sympathetic, and Pakistan has to keep large concentrations and assets on the Indian border in case Modi takes advantage

    What a stupid risk for Islamabad to take, this could be June 2014 all over again

    • Awoo [she/her]@hexbear.net
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      2 days ago

      My money is definitely on the taliban here. They are significantly more experienced and it has not been long enough for those experiences to age out completely.

        • MarmiteLover123 [comrade/them, any]@hexbear.net
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          1 day ago

          Big difference between offense and defence. Against the US, the Taliban were on the defence as an insurgency, the US on the offensive. Now it’s the opposite, the Taliban is on the offensive, trying to seize territory, and can’t be insurgents trying to ambush attackers.

          The Taliban in Afghanistan also lost every single major battle/engagement vs the USA. They didn’t win a single large battle. They outlasted the US as an insurgency for 20 years despite that, while the USA pursued an always doomed to fail “nation building” plan. That’s how the Taliban won the war on a strategic level. This is very different from invading Pakistan, holding territory, etc. Unless the Taliban plan to bait Pakistan into invading and occupying Afghanistan, they can’t use that strategy.

          • CitizensTyrant [he/him]@hexbear.net
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            1 day ago

            Holy lib slop.

            Big difference between offense and defence. Against the US, the Taliban were on the defence as an insurgency, the US on the offensive. Now it’s the opposite, the Taliban is on the offensive, trying to seize territory, and can’t be insurgents trying to ambush attackers.

            First of all Pakistan declared war, and are the ones bombing Afghanistan. How does your mind translate that into the Taliban being the aggressors?

            Second, the Taliban have major strongholds in both Afghanistan and Pakistan, they aren’t “invading” anything. The borderlands between Afghanistan and Pakistan have essentially been Taliban territory since before they were even the Taliban. These areas are also incredibly ethnically diverse. The nature of their struggle hasn’t changed beyond Pakistan officially declaring itself an adversary. At the US’ behest, no doubt.

            The Taliban in Afghanistan also lost every single major battle/engagement vs the USA. They didn’t win a single large battle. They outlasted the US as an insurgency for 20 years despite that, while the USA pursued an always doomed to fail “nation building” plan. That’s how the Taliban won the war on a strategic level. This is very different from invading Pakistan, holding territory, etc. Unless the Taliban plan to bait Pakistan into invading and occupying Afghanistan, they can’t use that strategy.

            That’s literally the purpose of an insurgency. Avoid large, pitched battles and wage asymmetrical warfare and engage in a campaign of attrition. Which they executed flawlessly and kept the US and NATO from achieving ANY strategic objectives of their own. That’s literally the very definition of a successful insurgency. Like, what are you even saying here lol