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SAVAŞIN STRATEJİK PARÇASI ANLATI: AFGANİSTAN ÖRNEĞİ

Anlatı, aktörlerin kendilerine ve başkalarına verdiği anlamlarla ilgili hikâye sistemleridir. Anlatılar her zaman savaşların bir parçası olmuştur. Anlatılar kısaca hikâye sistemleri olsalar da 20. yüzyılın son çeyreğinden bu yana değişen savaşlarda etki gücüne sahip yeni stratejik araçlar haline gelmişlerdir. Çünkü anlatılar etki yaratırlar ve bazen toplumları değişmeye zorlarlar. Bunu yapabildikleri zaman da stratejik değeri olan araçlar olurlar. Ancak bunun gerçekleşmesi için iki temel koşul yerine getirilmelidir. Öncelikle, savaşlardaki anlatının parçalarını oluşturan hikayeler birbirleri ile tutarlı olmalıdır. Bunun yanı sıra insanların sadece anlatılan hikayelerin dinleyicileri değil, aynı zamanda aktif birer katılımcı olma isteklerine cevap verilmelidir. Bu açıdan, görülmektedir ki savaş ile anlatı arasındaki ilişki oldukça karmaşıktır. Bununla birlikte savaşlarda devletlerin yanı sıra terör örgütleri ve kalkışmacı gruplar gibi yeni aktörler öne çıkmıştır. Bu yeni aktörler de devletler gibi kendilerine savaşlarda stratejik avantaj elde etme arayışındadır. Başka bir deyişle, anlatı, politik aktörlerin politik hedeflerine ulaşırken ihtiyaç duydukları stratejik avantajı elde etmeleri için bir kaynak haline gelmiştir. 2006'da ABD ordusunun Afganistan'daki komutanı General David Petraeus, basit, anlaşılır ancak yerel halkın sorularına cevap veren bir anlatı oluşturmaya çalışmıştır. Bu sayede ABD’ye Afganistan’da stratejik, operasyonel ve taktik pozisyonlarda avantaj sağlamayı amaçlamıştır. Öte yandan Taliban, ABD ve diğer NATO güçlerine karşı kendi anlatılarıyla sahada etkin olmaya çalışmıştır. Sonucunda Afganistan'daki savaş bir anlatı savaşı haline gelmiştir. Bu noktada Afganistan'daki savaşın tartışılması, anlatıya savaşlardaki değişen stratejik unsurlardan biri olarak bakılması açısından gereklidir. Çalışma kapsamında bu temel çerçeveden yola çıkılarak ABD’nin ve Taliban’ın anlatılarının güçlü ve zayıf yanları ele alınacak ve Afganistan’daki savaş kapsamında anlatının stratejik değeri gösterilecektir.

NARRATIVE AS THE STRATEGIC PART OF WAR: THE CASE OF AFGHANISTAN

Narrative is story system about the meanings that actors give to themselves and others. However, the value of the narrative in the current wars has been strengthened. Although narratives are short story systems, they are the new strategic tools that have influence in the wars that have changed since the last quarter of the 20th century. Because narratives create effects on societies and sometimes force societies to change. When they do so, they become tools with strategic value. However, two basic conditions must be fulfilled for this to happen. First, the stories that consist of the narrative in the wars should be consistent with each other. In addition to this, people should not only be the listener of the stories told but also be an active participant of them. In this respect, it is seen that the relationship between war and narrative is quite complex. In the new wars, new actors such as terrorist organizations and insurgents stand out in addition to states. These new actors, like the states, seek to gain strategic advantage. In other words, the narrative becomes a resource for political actors to obtain the strategic advantage that they need to achieve their political goals. In 2006, General David Petraeus, the commander of the US military in Afghanistan, aimed to create a narrative that was simple, understandable, but answered the questions of the local people. In this way, he tried to give the US an advantage in strategic, operational and tactical positions in Afghanistan. and aimed to give the US an advantage in strategic, operational and tactical positions in Afghanistan. On the other hand, the Taliban tried to be active in the field of operations with their own narratives against the US and other NATO forces, as well. Therefore, the war in Afghanistan has become a narrative war. At this point, the discussion of the war in Afghanistan is necessary in terms of looking at the narrative as one of the changing strategic elements in wars. Within the scope of this study, the strong and weak aspects of USA and the Taliban narratives will be discussed and the strategic value of the narrative will be indicated in the Afghanistan war.

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