Appearing Saturday at the US embassy in Kabul, General David Petraeus spouted platitudes about “teams” and “missions” without ever stating just what mission it is that our team is attempting to carry out.

Continued civilian deaths resulting from night raids by Special Forces in Afghanistan have prompted more spin on the reasoning behind placing these forces under McChrystal’s command.

The New York Times recently published the full text of U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry’s memo to President Obama detailing his deep reservations about sending more troops to Afghanistan. The White House ignored his warnings and sent troops anyway.

More than sixty nations will gather in London tomorrow for an important series of talks on the future of Afghanistan. General Stanley McChrystal, who heads US forces in Afghanistan, sat for an extended interview with the Financial Times in advance of the conference. His comments, when taken in total, amount to an admission that US strategy in Afghanistan has failed and yet he insists that we must re-commit to this same failed strategy.

The New York Times has obtained full copies of two cables Ambassador Karl Eikenberry sent to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the most recent review of Afghanistan strategy. Although it was known at the time that Eikenberry opposed McChyrstal’s strategy based primarily on counterinsurgency, having access to the full text of the cables provides more detail on Eikenberry’s reasoning.