Afghanistan

Gerard Henderson

Commander's regret over Afghanistan proves the case for public silence

Gerard Henderson Major-General John Cantwell (Retired) is a fine, brave man with a distinguished military record. It just happens that Cantwell is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Comments 67

Michelle Grattan

Gillard, Abbott out of sync with public on Afghanistan

Michelle Grattan The gulf between the political leaders and public opinion on Australia's presence in Afghanistan was dramatically highlighted yesterday.

Comments 43

Seumas Milne

Negotiated settlement best chance to avert civil war in failed Afghanistan

Seumas Milne Massacres flow from the very nature of foreign occupations.

John Cantwell

Withdrawal heralds fresh dangers in Afghanistan

John Cantwell We're pulling our troops out for political reasons, not for military purposes.

Tom Switzer

It was inevitable that Afghanistan was going to end badly

Tom Switzer It was clear before Julia Gillard's address this week that it is past time for Australia's role in Afghanistan to end. Now the only question is whether our 1550 troops depart quickly or depart slowly.

A very long endgame in Afghanistan

Hamish McDonald In 1989, I spent some time in Afghanistan looking at the prospects of the Soviet-backed Najibullah regime after Mikhail Gorbachev had pulled Moscow's demoralised ''Afgantsy'' expeditionary force back...

Containment of the war in Afghanistan the most likely option

Simon Tisdall Imagine the scene aboard Air Force One on the tarmac in Copenhagen last Friday. Barack Obama is exhausted, having flown the Atlantic overnight to back Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Daniel Flitton

Truth a casualty of Afghanistan war, as ever

Daniel Flitton Australia's leaders have not been fair dinkum with the Australian people about the war in Afghanistan, to parrot a bit of slang loved by Kevin Rudd. That much is now plain.

Comments 14

Michelle Grattan

Coalition's charge ahead on Afghanistan ends in abject retreat

Michelle Grattan The opposition's policy flip-flops are worrying on an issue as vital as war.

Comments 146

Gerard Henderson

Party leaders closer on Afghanistan war than you may think

Gerard Henderson The skirmish as to whether Julia Gillard or Tony Abbott is playing politics with the Opposition Leader's recent visit to Afghanistan overlooks a more important issue.

Comments 23

Staring at the abyss, thank God for Alan

Mike Carlton Surely the FBI could have saved itself a lot of time and trouble if it had rung our very own Alan Jones, the visionary broadcaster, to find out who was behind the Boston bombing.

Use of term 'illegal' is ignorant or mischievous

Jane McAdam While the Coalition may have hoped to score political points with the reappearance of its "illegal boats" billboard this week, it has shone a spotlight on its feeble grasp of international law.

Abbott has moved on from playing the clown

Jacqueline Maley Opposition Leader Tony Abbott was interviewed by Leigh Sales on 7.30 on Wednesday night. It was a TV event highly anticipated by politics dorks, and I know several who raced home for it.

Bali process grinds on with no sign of results

Michael Bachelard For the fifth time, dozens of the world's ministers flew this week to an over-air-conditioned hotel meeting room in Bali, sat gravely around a very large table and achieved next to nothing.

Comments 29

How the world saw the big issues

Richard Klass The common reaction to North Korea is to laugh away its threats, along the lines of, ''They'll never do it … have you seen the guy?''

Diggers keep larrikin spirit alive

Paul Daley BELTING golf balls into the hostile enemy terrain of Afghanistan from inside a secured perimeter may not be the most effective way to dispatch the Taliban.

David Forbes

Defence leadership on soldier welfare comes from the top

David Forbes Major-General John Cantwell has told a parliamentary inquiry the Defence Force needs to continue its efforts to de-stigmatise mental health problems if it is to deal with the growing number of...