September 3, 2006: A number of countries that have pulled out, or are planning to pull out of the Iraq mission (accompanied by much bitching from some Americans), have actually been increasing their commitment to the Afghan mission. Apparently it's just cheaper and easier for them to maintain, say, 250 troops in Afghanistan, than 100 in Iraq and 150 in Afghanistan. Moreover, fighting al Qaeda in Afghanistan is more politically correct than fighting the same kind of Islamic thugs in Iraq.
There are also practical reasons as well. The opposition in Afghanistan is far less lethal than the bad guys in Iraq. The Afghanistan opposition are a bunch of hillbillies equipped with AK-47s. In Iraq, you are dealing with many of Saddam's secret police professionals. These are guys who really know how to kill people, and have lots of experience at it. Ironically, most non-American coalition troops serve in quiet areas of north and south Iraq. But in Afghanistan, more of the NATO peacekeepers are moving into pro-Taliban areas of the south. There, lots of violence is to be found, more than one would encounter in, say, southern Iraq. Such is the price of political correctness.