Some alternative Afghanistan questions

Jim Molan's list of Afghanistan questions begins with, 'Is the war winnable?' But this strategic question ought to be preceded by a grand-strategic one: Is the war worth winning?

Here are some other questions that flow from those five words:

• What are the most important issues facing Australia in the modern world, and does our Afghanistan commitment reflect these priorities? Should our military and diplomatic focus instead be on:
  • coping with the rising powers of Asia and the relative decline of the US?
  • preparing for Australia's own relative decline against fast-growing Southeast Asian economies?
  • reinforcing and encouraging Indonesia's transition to democracy and modernity?
  • building regional and international institutions that can guard Australia against strategic shocks, whether these be economic, strategic or environmental?
• At what point should Australia stop trying to build credits with the US through troop commitments, and instead serve the alliance by counseling US restraint?
• Should Australia try to convince the US — perhaps by withdrawing our forces — that the war is a strategic sideshow and that the US ought to focus its attention on rebuilding its economic strength so that it can remain a strong Pacific power?
• Will the terrorist threat diminish noticeably if we achieve our Afghanistan war aims, or will terrorists simply migrate to other lawless territories?
• If Australia's withdrawal did lead to an increased terrorist threat, could we live with that?
• In terms of counter-terrorism, what is the opportunity cost of the Afghanistan mission? Could the resources be better used to:
  • buttress our very successful regional counter-terrorism approach, which focuses on intelligence and policing?
  • do something about Australia's diplomatic deficit, given that diplomacy has been crucial to opening doors to regional counter-terrorism cooperation?
  • improve the resilience of Australian infrastructure against terrorist strikes?