New U.S. commander for Afghanistan faces old political fights

The Pentagon announced on Wednesday that US President Barack Obama had nominated a veteran of the Afghan war to command US and allied troops in Afghanistan.

If approved by the Senate, Lt Gen Nicholson would take over for General John Campbell, who has served as the top U.S. commander for Afghanistan since August 2014.

Officials have said that Taliban representatives will be invited when the four countries reach some understanding on the overall roadmap.

This comes as there have been growing concerns regarding the growing activities of the loyalists of the terror group as they have been trying to expand foothold in the country.

Nicholson stated that he would encourage the security forces of both Pakistan and Afghanistan so that they may mutually combat their enemies.

Nicholson would succeed General John Campbell, who is expected to retire around the beginning of March.

Lt. General Nicholson stated that terrorist organizations such as Islamic State (IS) and Al-Qaeda are tyring to create hideouts in Afghanistan. Afghan News Agency on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook. Once it gets a confirmatory nod from United States Senate, the replacement would come in effect. Afghan forces and U.S. Special Operations troops combined to destroy the camp in a multi-day operation in October.

Nicholson said he did not want to insert himself in dialogue started by Campbell and his staff because he wasn’t confirmed, but still signaled support for the measure, citing a request made by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani for more air power. “By now, we should have learned from the precipitous withdrawal from Iraq and the disaster that ensued that wars do not end because politicians say so”, McCain charged.

It is believed that the process of peace in Afghanistan will be a test for all parties due to strong opposition within Afghanistan towards any peace with the Taliban.

“Conditions on the ground in Afghanistan today clearly demand an immediate re-evaluation of scheduled American troop withdrawals”, said McCain, the committee’s chairman.

“We need to prevent Kandahar from falling into the hands of the Taliban”, Nicholson said, adding he would “absolutely” recommend using USA military force to prevent the Taliban from retaking the provincial capital. He said American troops will not be in Afghanistan in an “endless sense”.

Nicholson said he agreed with plans by the outgoing commander, General John Campbell, to keep as many troops in Afghanistan for as long as possible before reducing them to 5,500 USA troops, as ordered, by January 1, 2017.