The Afghan campaign has just suffered its most calamitous casualty. President Barack Obama's decision to sack General Stanley McChrystal, the architect of America's highly controversial surge strategy for winning the war in Afghanistan, has, at a stroke, deprived the campaign of its highly respected and iconic leader. It has also plunged the Western alliance into chaos and raised serious questions about whether this bitter conflict can be brought to a successful resolution.
In appointing General David Petraeus as his replacement, Mr Obama insists there will be no change in the strategy that was personally devised by Gen McChrystal to bring the bloody war in Afghanistan to a successful conclusion. "I want to tell the American people that this is a change in personnel but not a change in policy," Mr Obama said, after confirming that he had accepted Gen McChrystal's resignation as the US commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan. He will also need to reassure Washington's key allies in Europe, particularly Britain, who have invested much in blood and treasure in supporting the McChrystal strategy.
