Over-the-Horizon Is Far Below Standard
Why terrorists will welcome Biden’s counterterrorism strategy.
By Tore Hamming, a non-resident fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, King’s College,
January 5, 2022, 8:06 AM
“We conduct effective counterterrorism missions against terrorist groups in multiple countries where we don’t have a permanent military presence. If necessary, we will do the same in Afghanistan,” said U.S. President Joe Biden on Aug. 16, commenting on the situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban’s rapid takeover of the country. “We’ve developed counterterrorism over-the-horizon capability that will allow us to keep our eyes firmly fixed on any direct threats to the United States in the region and to act quickly and decisively if needed.”
The person tasked with managing that over-the-horizon campaign, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, leader of U.S. Central Command, is less optimistic. McKenzie has said that he does not believe the U.S. military is currently capable of confronting the terrorism threat that various militant groups in Afghanistan may pose.
History suggests McKenzie is right and that, over time, the U.S. military will grow ever less capable of handling the threat due to a lack of intelligence assets on the ground in Afghanistan. The U.S. military has a mixed record of targeted air attacks, even with troops on the ground, yet the current challenge in Afghanistan exceeds any previous experience due to the complex nature of the deteriorating security environment. Not only is Afghanistan governed by a group hostile to the United States; the country’s immediate neighbors do not offer a particularly welcoming platform from where the United States could realistically expect to conduct an effective counterterrorism campaign.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/01/05/over-the-horizon-biden-afghanistan-counter-terrorism/
