[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Happy Times

The area that works as their supply and staging ground can be denied from them, its a political decision to do it.
It isnt every square mile or every border, its a specific area.

Really? Islamic terror is globally networked now, with many states, even thjose considered to be "moderate" and "tourist-friendly" supporting them onely or in the hidden, with money, weapons, intel. Their support basis ranges from Marocco to Indonesia. Som esupporters are more prominent than others, namely Pakistan, but that does not mean the supporting role is limited to Pakistan. Also, the nature of the enemy in Afghanistan is not that one-sided as oyu think. There are the Taliban, yes, but there are also plenty of internal local tribal warbands, clans, etc. Some get supported by Pakistan, others by Iran, and third parties by completely other sides. Do not get mislead by the general impression that the enemy is acting united. Alliances change quickly in Afghanistan, as we know since a very long time.

And Israel has chosen a strategy of containment, they could eliminate the threat completly if they wanted to.

That staement is in total opposition to what even high ranking Israeli military officers and intel commanders are saying. They neither can deal with the Iranian program all by themselves, nor with the diversity of threats they are encircled by. Plus the increasing number of Palestians living in their middle, insaide Israel. The last two wars they fought, they got defeated in, with their enem ies then today being stronger than ever before. The next military clash is just a question of time. I fear that then once again they will fail to acchieve the objectives.

In the long run, Israel to me appears as being undefendable. Their problem is: they have no alternative to just sit there and cling on their land as long as they can.

[quote]A local victory in Afganistan is possible in a sense that it can be pacified.[{quote]

Afghanistan is getting pacified since over 30 years. That may have something to do with that it is a classical warrior clture you try to "pacify".

Don't use Western categories and schemes on non-Wetsern places. In most cases it does not work, and when it does, then it is by random chance only.

The global ideological struggle is a different story that needs long term strategies, we can discuss containment, intelligence operations, proxy wars and counterinsurgency in case to case basis.

No, you are making THE classiv mistake of the West here: to assume that it is a "different story". It is not, but is most vitally linked to every aspect of jihad, and that includes the single act of terrorism as well as migration movements and ideology - it is all diferent featzres of one and the same basic conflict.

This misunderstanding by the West is what gives Islam much of it'S advantages at the current stage of the struggle.

Too much Clausewitz, too much traditonal strategic thinking I read in your thoughts. But this is no symmateric conflict basing on Clausewitz' strategic ideas. Clausewitz does not work with asymmetric wars and clashing civilisations. The old concepts of politic and military conflict strategy are obsolete in this kind of conflict the world sees now.