Syed Saleem Shahzad Asia Times On-line's Pakistan Bureau Chief traveled to southern Afghanistan to meet with members of the Taliban and local tribal leaders to see what preparations are being made by the Taliban for a major confrontation with NATO forces and to witness how tribal governance is working in conjunction with the Taliban's idea of government apparently not very well. The entire article can be read at The Asia Times

KARACHI - The battle lines have been drawn on the Afghan chessboard for what is likely to be a decisive confrontation between foreign forces and the Taliban-led tribal resistance. Both sides have fine-tuned their strategies, have engaged their pawns, and are poised for action.

The Taliban's efforts are focused on next spring, after the harsh winter weather eases, while North Atlantic Treaty Organization

(NATO) forces aim to "nip this evil in the bud", using the province of Kandahar as their strategic base.

The Province of Kandahar which boarders Pakistan is in the minds of Taliban leaders and military strategists the key to their return to power in Afghanistan. Kandahar has always been a Taliban strong hold and they believe that by surrounding the city of Kandahar and cutting off NATO forces they will once again control this area and ultimately the whole of Afghanistan. As noted above there has never been a true force on force confrontation between the Taliban and NATO. If a large battle is brewing would the Taliban abandon guerilla tactics for those of conventional warfare? In doing so they might not like the out come of the battle.

Maulana Jalaluddin Haqqani, head of the Taliban's military operations in Afghanistan, is in the Pakistani tribal area of North Waziristan - a virtually independent region in Taliban hands. The one-legged former Taliban intelligence chief Mullah Dadullah is also in Pakistani territory, shuttling between South Waziristan tribal area and border areas near Pakistan's Balochistan province and southwestern Afghanistan.

Haqqani and Dadullah, on the instructions of Taliban leader Mullah Omar, are talking to tribespeople in southwestern and southeastern Afghanistan to smooth the path for the Taliban taking control. The Taliban are pledging to share everything with the tribes, including land, power and resources.

This process is still ongoing and, according to people close to the Taliban, once it is completed the Taliban will call for a full mobilization of troops and Mullah Omar will go to Baghran to command them personally in the push to Kandahar and ultimately Kabul.

Talking to people is one thing. Providing for their basic needs is something else. Especially in an area as remote as this. Where there is little or not medical service. People live in homes made of mud bricks and the schools are being burnt down because the Taliban as thing against education. With people already living in abject poverty how does your harsh rule provide them with any comfort or hope for the future? Finally it doesn't help when the person put in charge of the district isn't the brightest bulb in the world and the only reason he holds the position is because in graduated from a Taliban run school.

In the beginning there was Baghran
Once all issues between tribal leaders and the Taliban have been hammered out, Mullah Omar will move to Baghran, the northernmost district in Helmand province. It is the last Pashtun-speaking district in the southwest before one gets to the neighboring Persian-speaking western provinces, such as Ghor.

Baghran has always been an important hub for the Taliban, serving as a rallying point to mend differences between Tajik commanders and pro-Taliban Pashtun commanders.

The only problem here is that the local tribal leaders as well as those who once fought the Soviets seem to have a different ideas. As in we can look after are selves.