Small Wars Journal

Trump’s Afghan Gamble Now Rests On General He Doubted

Fri, 08/25/2017 - 12:36am

Trump’s Afghan Gamble Now Rests On General He Doubted by Mujib Mashal - New York Times

The commander in chief and his commander fighting the uphill war in Afghanistan have never met.

Even after months of delay, when President Trump convened his national security team to complete his Afghanistan strategy, the commander, Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr., was conspicuously absent.

That distance reflects a remarkable shift in America’s longest war. Mr. Trump’s predecessors overcame even the most awkward relationships for regular briefings with their field commanders.

When General Nicholson, a 61-year-old combat veteran described by peers as a “thinker warrior,” was asked at a news conference in Kabul on Thursday if he had directly briefed the president, he said: “I provide my input through the chain of command, and this system works well.”

In many ways, General Nicholson’s career has been shaped by the war. He took command in Afghanistan during the Obama administration, is on his fourth tour and even met his wife because of their shared interests in the country.

The general got most of what he had sought in the strategy announced by Mr. Trump: increases in American military trainers and air support in targeting the Taliban, without deadlines.

But Mr. Trump emphasized that he had been reluctantly persuaded to perpetuate the war, which he has described as a total disaster — not exactly a vote of confidence in General Nicholson. “My original instinct was to pull out,” Mr. Trump said. “And historically, I like following my instincts.”

Now, the task of ensuring that Mr. Trump’s gamble does not blow up in his face falls on General Nicholson, making the tightrope he has been walking even more wobbly.

The general, who had pleaded with the Obama administration not to reduce his resources, got little attention from the Trump White House for months. And just a few weeks ago, word leaked that Mr. Trump had talked of firing him — for little of his own doing. So while General Nicholson may be newly empowered, he has also been undermined in the eyes of his Afghan partners…

Read on.