“A loss of Afghanistan is a win for the Taliban and the Al Qaeda in Pakistan with potential serious consequences for Paksitan…It is not about how many Al Qaeda fighters are in Afghanistan but how the Al Qaeda network enables, trains, and supports the Taliban. We cannot conveniently separate the two, if we lose in Afghanistan, the Al Qaeda will be right behind the Taliban as they take over…. “Why not make a political accommodation with the Taliban in exchange for stopping the violence and possibly ensuring that no Al Qaeda sanctuary returns to Afghanistan. This is the height of folly and naiveté. The Taliban are winning from their perspective, believe that the U.S. will be leaving, and they will be back in control of Afghanistan. Why should they settle for less, now, when they can get it all, later? In their minds, time is on their side. These leaders have been approached before and there’s no deal to be had and, “for the life of me,” what part of Afghanistan do we surrender to the Taliban, forcing the Afghan people, who we have supported for eight years, to live under the Taliban sadistic rule… “Given the new COIN strategy and current force levels what can we do to turn around the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan in the meantime? How do we mitigate the 2 to 3 years as we wait for the appropriate growth of the ANSF? The only remaining answer to ‘stop the bleeding’ and turn around the situation is the introduction of U.S. troops…I will leave to Gen. McChrystal as to what the appropriate number is because only he and his staff have the fidelity to make that kind of analysis.”