Strong talk in Finland taking wider role in Afghanistan

[Happy Times]

The director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, an independent think-tank, believes that Finland should seriously consider expanding its operations in Afghanistan.

Raimo Väyrynen says that at the least, the increasing instability in the region means that the Finnish government needs to set down a clear policy of involvement. This includes a thorough discussion of the risks, justifications, and political reasons for peacekeeping.

"The question is, how ready is Finland to commit to Afghanistan," Väyrynen says. "Is Finland ready to accept responsibility for a whole area in the north? This would definitely require sending more resources, and the risk would increase."

He added that he doesn't see how Finland can decide to pull out, especially since co-operation with other Nordic countries has worked well.

The government is planning to do a thorough re-evaluation of its peacekeeping policy this autumn. The government has already decided to pull out of Lebanon, where Finland has a very small presence to help in de-mining. It?s expected that Finland will increase its presence in Kosovo.

http://www.yle.fi/news/left/id65222.html

Good that this is discussed, its time to start taking some responsibility and stop hiding behind others backs. The foreign minister, defense minister and military have allready proposed this. Now its up to our weak links, prime minister and the president. People seem to be ready, there have been no demands to get out of Afganistan. NATO has offered three possible PRT (Provincial Reconstruction Teams) areas for Finland, Nimroz next to Helmland bordering Pakistan, Deikund and Panshir near Kabul. None of them are in the north, and he knows it very well. I think a few f-18s, SOF and Jäger batallion with Leopards and AMOS would be a good contribution.

[Skybird]

I would nobody recommend to headlessly increase his engagement in Afghnaistan without clearing out the objectives first. The politicial goals for Afghanistan, as voiced by our beloved leaders, are slogans and phrases only, having little or no link to reality. Right now, poppy is cultivated under NATO protection. Sympathizers of the Taleban get bribed. The alliances between Afghan tribes are fluid. deals are done with the arch-enemy. The Pakistani secret service has it's hands everywhere, strongly sympathoizing with the Taleban. On both sides of the border, talking of an Afghan civiol war and a war between Kabulistan and Pakistani is growing. Musharaf at the same time has serious troubles to keep alive and keep it all together, playing fould double games on NATO and maybe even has no toher chance than to do so. The Taleban have infiltrated bigger and bigger parts of Afghan society, especially the farmers. It seems they were able to gain sympathy not only amongst Pashtuns, like last time, but in all ethnicities there - and that is new. That also is helped by the regular civilian mass killing by American bombardements causing "collateral damage".

It'S a maze, and NATO blindly stumbles around and does not even know wether to move to the exit, to the centre, or where the noise is coming from, and wether the pink sky means it is sunset or dawning, or is a poppy-dust induced hallucination. It should go back to the North Atlantic.

What we know is that the poppy cultivation hit all-time record highs with NATO standing by, Taleban successfully undermining administrative and civil structures, and Pakistan steadily moving towards war. - Some thousand more troops are hardly able to change that. I would prefer to see a fundamental change in strategy, away from trying to win battles in foreign countries like Afghnaistan and Iraq, and towards sealing our own homesphere against these places: militarily, economically, politically, touristically. We need to battle civil infiltration, and ideological indoctrination taking place in our places at home, dependance of oil, and demographic pressure from legal and illegal mass migration. In how far our armies fighting endless battles they do not understand and cannot win on the other side of the planet, can help in that, is mistery to me. At the same time the Taleban, and other factions!, are winning by successfully preventing NATO to gain military victory. They must not militarily win by themselves.

Afghanistan was lost in the first 18 months after the Taleban had been temporarily chased away and attention shifted towards the unneeded Iraq war, not giving Afghanistan the priority support that it would have needed. If you plant new flowers, you water them immediately after that - not two weeks later. Not even half of the promises that were given, had been kept, and many projects were misled by lacking knowledge, stupidity, and unavoidably mistakes, which often went at the cost of the farmers.

NATO's problems are self-made. Wait, NATO even was not involved from the start, and later allowed to get lured into the mess...

[Happy Times]

I know all that, its more about showing our friends. The military wants to go, and the minute they dont want, they will be pulled out. Thats the system here.

[P_Funk]

Originally Posted by Happy Times

The military wants to go....

As much as I aqdvocate my country's continued role in Afghanistan, thats a very undemocratic way to think. I don't trust the military one iota.:p

[Happy Times]

Originally Posted by P_Funk

As much as I aqdvocate my country's continued role in Afghanistan, thats a very undemocratic way to think. I don't trust the military one iota.:p

Every year there are polls about who the Finns trust. Some results, politicians 10% , used car salesman 25%, police 91%, military 98% :rotfl:

[P_Funk]

Originally Posted by Happy Times

Every year there are polls about who the Finns trust. Some results, politicians 10% , used car salesman 25%, police 91%, military 98% :rotfl:

Ha that may be true. But politicians and car salesmen never enact coups all by their lonesomes. I just look back to the 70s in Canada during the FLQ crisis to know how far I can trust the cops and the army.

[TteFAboB]

Your soldiers will melt under the sun... they'll feel at home at night though.

[Happy Times]

Originally Posted by TteFAboB

Your soldiers will melt under the sun... they'll feel at home at night though.

I dont know, thing they have allways done first, since Suez and Sinai, is to build a sauna. Even hot desert feels cool after even hotter sauna. Heres one From Afganistan.

[The Avon Lady]

Originally Posted by TteFAboB

Your soldiers will melt under the sun... they'll feel at home at night though.

What are you talking about? Afghanistan even has !

[Jimbuna]

One RPG = One catfish.....expensive commodity.....fish probably cost more than Opium over there :hmm:

[TteFAboB]

So if you refuse civil service you go to jail? Certainly you're not mentioning the exception for motives of conscience or religion?

[Happy Times]

Originally Posted by TteFAboB

So if you refuse civil service you go to jail? Certainly you're not mentioning the exception for motives of conscience or religion?

Yes, if you wont do either you get 197 days of prison. I dont see how some should get a free ride while others serve for the common good.

[The Avon Lady]

Originally Posted by Happy Times

Yes, if you wont do either you get 197 days of prison.

190.

200.

197? :hmm:

[Happy Times]

Originally Posted by The Avon Lady

190.

200.

197? :hmm:

Beats me.

[TteFAboB]

Originally Posted by Happy Times

Yes, if you wont do either you get 197 days of prison. I dont see how some should get a free ride while others serve for the common good.

Where else is it like this? The conscripted nations I knew included the exception, but they are kept in low profile, pretty much hidden actually, to prevent every smart ass from abusing of it since the state doesn't have any means to tell a fair claim from a false one, just like it is forced to recognize as a religion anything that proclaims itself as one.

This is a very clever way of closing the gap. Who could have a problem with civil service? Actually, what is this civil service? The internet tells me it's basically governamental slave labor.