I was originally investigating a claim that I heard that Bin Laden was actually trained or supported by the CIA to help fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. I found an interesting article which makes a bolder claim that the Taliban was at one point funded by the US.
Here’s the article
http://www.orientmagazine.com/article.php3?article=262
Could the Taliban be a product of the US?
I could see this turning into a debate. Please just provide information from news sources.
Everything I read was that we were allies at one point in the sense that we both wanted Russia out of Afghanistan. The turning point was when we used Saudi Arabia land as bases in the gulf war. That’s what turned Bin laden against the US.
This is similair to the Iran vs. Iraq war. Didn’t we side with Iraq during that conflict and provide arms?
The US gave the Taliban $40 million just a few months ago, according to this LA Times article
It’s not just Bush, though, despite the anti-Bush rhetoric in the article. Over the last 6 years the US has given over $400 million to the Taliban, as part of the “War on Drugs”.
Arjuna34
The $40 Mil was mostly in food and medical supplies for the famine-struck. So was the majority of the rest of the $400 mil.
Bin Laden may or may not be our creation, but the Taliban is nothing of our doing.
The Taliban was created in Pakistan, maybe, or maybe not with initial Pakistanni support, for the purpose of taking up the war against the Soviets. Initially, they were fairly successful, and gained adherants and alliances with other groups fighting the Soviets. The Taliban succeded in subsuming some groups, recruited away the followers of others, intimdated some into ‘line’, and overwhelming the rest. In the end, there were two main groups fighting for control of the newly soviet-free Afganistan: The Pakistan-based and -supported Taliban, and Northern Afganistan-based and Iranian-supported coalition. The Taliban has been slowly wiping out the Northern coalition.
Yes, we provided some military material to the various mujehedin groups, but aside from Stinger missles, nothing significant.
Tranquilis,
I’m not sure where you learned what you learned, but the Pakistani theory seems to find some support.
http://www.afghan-web.com/articles/story.html
However, the Taliban represent themselves as an indigenous movement and there seems to be evidence to support that as well.
All in all, whether or not the Taliban were largely aided by Pakistan, it doesn’t seem to relate to the possible involvement with the CIA. If you know of any links pertaining to the significance of the aid given I’d appreciate them.
Perhaps the Taliban’s reaction to Pakistan’s demands for Bin Laden will demonstrate some of their true affiliations.
Here’s a link to an article about the support and training BL and the Talibans received from the US :
http://www.janes.com/regional_news/americas/news/jdw/jdw010914_1_n.shtml
I was watching Oprah today (okay, okay I am not a talk show person but she also had on Senator Joseph Biden on so I was watching) and a woman named Judith Miller was a featured guest. She has spent a great deal of her journalist career in the Middle East and was one of the only reporters from the US to enter into Afganistan (sp).
She basically stated, and this is paraphrasing, that bin Laden was trained by the US. While I (techie) don’t know much about any foriegn aid given to the Taliben, she pretty much stated that the Taliban stepped in in 1996 after two years of warring (and many with Russia) and promised safety, increased prosperity and other promises to allow them to come in and take over. (again, that’s paraphrased.)
These people called the Taliban, were schooled in the Kuran (spelling and it’s way off because it’s spelled with a Q?), any, in far off places that are much like the fundies of the Christian religion. Meaning they use the words to declare war.
So, while we have helped many become military strong in thinking and may have given money, the message behind the people are not what the US trained for. It was a group of extremists that began this.
Does that make sense?
Maybe there’s more on Oprah’s page that will explain what Miller was talking about. http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/tows_past_20010917.html
Remember Noriega in Panama? I believe he was originally supported by the US, and his army trained and armed by the US. Noriega, Sadaam Hussein, bin Laden,…We can thank the CIA and bad foreign policy for giving us our worst enemies.
Curious, you’re greatly overestimating the influence of American intelligence agencies in the Mid- and Far-East. Bad foreign policy certainly share some small, but only a little bit.