Disarmed Marines: Leaders Distrust Afghan, Not U.S. Soldiers

Media outlets have reported that military leaders ordered troops in Afghanistan to disarm prior to attending a speech by Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.

Some have analyzed this as meaning that the Department of Defense doesn’t trust its own troops. I disagree.

The real reason for the order to disarm U.S. Troops in a war zone likely comes from what Fox News and other sources have reported:

The official said the decision was made out of respect for troops from other countries, such as the Afghans, who are never allowed to bring guns into an event. It was not a request from Panetta or his security team, the official said.

If all this is true, then it is very revealing for multiple reasons, some of which others have already noted.

However, I haven’t seen anyone note this reason: it now appears that while our top leaders continue publicly stating that the Afghanis are our trusted allies, privately they do not believe the same.

In other words, we continue partnering our troops with fully armed Afghanis and are willing to risk their lives as part of achieving our mission. At the same time, we apparently do not allow armed Afghanis to be in the presence of important U.S. personnel.

I have no comment on this and am merely noting what message this story apparently sends if it is true. However, Big Peace readers are welcome to comment on the implications of this observation.