US drops program to train Syrian rebels
After much failure and embarrassment, the US is halting its program to build a rebel force. At the outset of the program rebel commanders voiced their reluctance to serve in a US force. Any force trained, armed, and paid by the US will be seen as a proxy. It will be resented and probably opposed.
Gulf states up their support for Syrian rebels
Angered by Russian moves, Saudi Arabia and its GCC allies have increased their support for the rebels. This should disabuse Putin and Assad from any notion of defeating the rebels. The war is stalemated and a negotiated settlement is needed.
Recent Taliban successes and the ominous ISIL presence has caused the US to rethink how many troops it can withdraw. My view has long been that the US would keep airpower, air transport, training missions, and reaction forces there for a long, long time.
Uzbek warlord parleys with Moscow
Abdul Rashid Dostum, a former officer in the Russian-backed army of the eighties who switched over to the mujahideen, has begun talks with Russia. He is concerned about Taliban successes and the US’s longterm commitment, Though Dostum is a vice president of Afghanistan (there are two VPs), he is also leader of the Uzbek people in the north.