Afghanistan:Despite Record Casualties McChrystal Says “Success Achievable”

The report from the new commander in Afghanistan, and former head of black-ops during the Bush-era, General McChrystal is finally completed and is being reviewed by the Pentagon & NATO. The report, not made available to the press, reviews the 8 year-long war in Afghanistan. McChrystal made this very short statement today:”The situation is serious, but success is still achievable and demands a revised implementation strategy, commitment and resolve, and increased unity of efforts.”

Most observers are anticipating that McChrystal’s report will put the accent on nearly doubling the Afghan army & police forces. The big question remains if McChrystal will ask for additional troops from Washington. This could become a difficult political situation for the Obama administration as public support for the war is eroding quickly. According to a recent poll from the Washington Post & ABC News, only 49 percent of Americans think fighting in Afghanistan is worth it.

BBC News’ Mark Mardell made the following extrapolation today:”General McChrystal blunt assessment will say that the Afghan people are undergoing a crisis of confidence because the war against the Taliban has not made their lives better.”

Meanwhile 2 US soldiers were killed today, in separate attacks in southern Afghanistan, two British soldiers were killed as well. An independent organization,which tracks the number of military losses, says that 307 foreign troops have died in Afghanistan so far this year, 180 of them are US soldiers. It is the deadliest year on record for foreign troops since the war begun in 2001. In 2008, by comparison, 294 foreign troops died in Afghanistan.

For a comprehensive report on all military casualties since 2001 click here.