Opium Cultivation in Afghanistan

Theoretically, it holds that the United States (US) invaded Afghanistan as a self-defense strategy following the 9/11 attacks. Practically, however, as US foreign policy is about conquest, self-protection and resource-extraction, it seeks strategic dominance of geographical space to sustain its global relevance. The rationality of the US suggests the need to continuously accumulate capital, resources and military proficiency to ensure autonomy. Therefore, a pragmatic reading into the motivation behind the invasion of Afghanistan negates the self-defense theory. Rather, the shifting coordinates of power within central and southern Asia crafted the perfect criteria for US intervention. This work explores the motivations and systemic cover-ups designed by the Bush administration in ordering military troops into Afghanistan in 2001. It will hold that this invasion was not just a War on Terror, but rather a tactic to ensure US prevalence within the region, and henceforth, the rest of the world. Thus, why did the US invade Afghanistan?

Taliban was an Islamic Fundamental Political movement in Afghanistan. While they had the power of Afghanistan they had imposed strict laws which were called the Islamic laws.Taliban mostly consisted of Afghan tribal men. Soon after that Al Qaeda set of to support them. Saudi Arabia supported them financially, but Taliban use that wealth to wipe out the afghan civilians.

The Taliban are an Islamic political movement. They ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. When they took over, several new laws, rules, and restrictions were made.

For over 2 centuries, Afghanistan has known virtually no time without war. Beginning around 326 B.C. with the conquests of Alexander the Great, to the Persians, British, Russians and most recently, America and our NATO allies, Afghanistan has been cultivated into the country that it is today through a trial by fire. Regardless of this relentless onslaught of foreign military power, the Afghan people have tirelessly defended their homeland with no outside power ever being able to subdue them completely. Following the withdrawal of the Soviet Union in 1989, the country fell into civil war, torn even further apart by fiercely dedicated tribal warlords. This power vacuum led to the rise of a group called the Taliban. Led by a one eyed man

Although some areas in Afghanistan and Iraq have improved and schools have been established, the United States has not done enough to help the people there. For example, the United States issued propaganda after the September 11 attacks that called for the liberation of women in Afghanistan. American citizens rallied in support of this movement and also supported the war because of it. Although some conditions have improved for women, the United States did not do as much as they said they would (Stabile). In addition, the opium trade has worsened in Afghanistan since the arrival of American troops; the country produces twice as much opium as it did in 2000 (Aikins). The War on Terror has also caused millions of innocent civilians’

The opium culture was already rampant before the CIA began their secret war in Laos, but the agency also facilitated the trade. A correspondent for Christian Science Monitor reported in 1970 that the CIA “is cognizant of, if not party to, the extensive movement of opium out of Laos.” A pilot also told the reporter that “opium shipments get special CIA clearance and monitoring on their flights southward out of the country.” One former CIA agent stationed in Laos, Anthony Poshepny aka “Tony Poe,” went on the record many years later. He said, “It was all a contractual relationship, just like bankers and businessmen. A wonderful relationship. Just a mafia. A big organized mafia.”

One of the most radical religious groups in the world today are known as the Taliban. The Taliban is a “fundamentalist Muslim group that controlled much of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001” (Maley NP). The Taliban took power after the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan. When the Soviet Union left Afghanistan, the Taliban rose to power and took much control of the country. The Taliban leader is Mullah Mohammad Omar. The Taliban in Afghanistan are an Islāmic group, that uses harsh rules against Afghanistan’s women and helped attacked the United States.

The situation in Afghanistan actually began in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded their country. The United States funded money to the "mujahedin," or holy warriors, in the name of stopping communism. From this support, Afghanistan was able to defeat the Soviet Union in 1989. Yet the country became very unstable after the war. Political power was fluctuating often and leaders came in and out of power rapidly. Farmers resorted to growing many drugs such as poppies and marijuana and sold them around the globe. Cities were annihilated. Over five million Afghanis fled to other countries in search of a better life. When the Afghanis turned to the United States for help in rebuilding our country, we refused. This caused great anger amongst the Afghani people directed toward the United States. This also lead to Mullah Mohammod Omar, the current leader of Afghanistan, to form a ground of men to "rebuild" his country. They are now known as the Taliban. Omar's personal description is, "A simple band of dedicated youths determined to establish the laws of God on

Taliban means students and this name was chosen to symbolize how they were going to learn from their ancestors and take back their land and prevent it from being taken again. THey then engaged in Jihad, or “Holy war”, to take back afghanistan. Not long after the assault began they regained control of most of the upper part of afghanistan. Other factions had also risen and a war of multiple fronts started and thats how it was so quick to regain control. The area of Afghanistan was once again split into 3 major territories and completely obliterated. The Taliban then became a superpower, in relative terms to its opponents, and began to take control of all the Afghanistan territory. Uniting it, but at a cost. It promised to have a strict interpretation of the Quran, the Islamic holy book. But soon became corrupt and only became abusive to women and children and severely disadvantaged the males. To fund this foul government they allowed terrorists to take refuge, one such group was al-Qaeda. Headed by Osama bin-Laden, he began to lead the Taliban government from behind the scenes and he, along with interpretations from the Quran, was that the

The War in Afghanistan has been an all consuming conflict for the US government since we started to launch air strikes on October 7, 2001. This is a conflict that’s been brewing since before the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. This war has the continuation of past conflicts in it, conflicts that can be connected a good deal to the interference of other large powers, such as the USSR. From keeping an eye on the oil reserves, pressuring Iran, and keeping Pakistan stable, our interests and motives for occupying Afghanistan are undeniably laced with many ulterior motives, providing us with the issue of unfavorable opinion and our interests being the source of terrorist attacks. Afghanistan is a country that has been plagued with

The Taliban founded in the year of 1994 by a man named Mullah Mohammad Omar. It originated in Afghanistan and was created with the purpose of destroying the foreign military in Afghanistan and to reestablish the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan under strict Sharia Law ("Taliban Narrative"). The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan would then be brought back into play in the year of 1996. However, the event that led to the creation of the Taliban happened almost a decade earlier in the year of 1979. In 1979 the Soviets began invading Afghanistan, they were there for about ten years and then withdrew late in the year of 1988 and early 1989. Mujahedeen forces then removed the soviet government in the year of 1992 and led to rivalry between groups. A year

The Taliban, also known as The Afghan Taliban, is a terrorist organization that occupies large areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Taliban rose to power after the Soviet Union withdrew in 1989. By 1996, an extremist group by the name The Taliban had established themselves, enforcing a rather strict and brutal for of Sharia law. This was the beginning of what would seem to be a lifetime of horror for much of Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as the United States and the United Nations.

To achieve a full understanding of the opium farming situation we have to analyze the cause, the government’s response, and the aftermath. (Transition: To begin, we have to analyze the cause of the opium

The Taliban became responsible for punishing those who committed crimes by killing the criminals. These acts started a small fear in the Afghanistan people. Soon, the Taliban group became a well armed and well funded militia with the support of a province in Pakistan. As soon as fear stirred among the Afghani people, the president of Afghanistan, Burhanuddin Rabbani, tried to create an alliance against the Taliban in Kabul, the capitol. This alliance fell through, and the president eventually fled Afghanistan. In December of 1995, the Taliban took hold of Afghanistan as a result.

The Opium Wars were a series of three wars between the Chinese and the British; primarily fought in regard to the illegal trade of opium in China during the 19th century. They manifested the conflicting natures of both nations and demonstrated China’s misconceptions of its own superiority. The Opium Wars resulted in the humiliating defeat of the Chinese to a country they considered to be “barbarians”.