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The Taleban in Afghanistan said it plans to launch a wave of attacks in response to a surge of American and foreign troops arriving in the country. Its top commander, Mullah Berader, said the group would unleash ambushes, roadside bombings and suicide attacks against foreign and Afghan government troops and officials and "whoever is supporting invaders in our country".  

There was a time when the Taleban proclaimed that thousands of suicide bombers were waiting to carry out attacks around the country, but that never happened. Nevertheless, one can't afford to be dismissive of this fanatical outfit, considering the increase in the overall number of attacks in recent years.

In response to the spike in attacks, US President Barack Obama has ordered 21,000 more troops to the country to bolster the 38,000 American and 32,000 other allied troops already there. Britain and Australia also said they would send more troops to the country. Most will be deployed to the southern region of the country, which is a Taleban stronghold.

The same week also saw British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announcing a new strategy for Afghanistan, as well as Pakistan.

"It has become increasingly clear over the last year just how crucial Pakistan and its border area with Afghanistan has become both for stability in Afghanistan and to our national security at home," said Brown.

But Britain is not alone, however. In this globalised world, no one is really out of the loop or can afford to turn a blind eye.

It has been seven years since the Taleban was ousted from Kabul. At first, the world cheered triumphantly as the militants fled the Afghan capital. But it wouldn't be long before the world realised that entering an enemy's capital is not the same thing as victory.

Today, seven years later, Taleban influence has spread through the southern part of the country and the Northwest Frontier provinces of Pakistan, as well as other regions, while the clout of the international community is waning fast.

In February, Pakistan agreed to let Taleban militants enforce Islamic law in the Swat Valley, once a popular ski resort, in a bid to end an uprising. But instead of disarming as required under the deal, armed Taleban forces pushed further towards the capital Islamabad, taking over large swathes of Malakand, Lower Dir and Buner, a district just 100 kilometres from the capital. Tension remains high with the Pakistani military on an offensive - but not an all-out assault - to push back the Taleban, which has grossly violated the peace accord.

When one considers the proximity of Pakistan and Afghanistan and the proliferation of Taleban units there, Brown is not far off the mark when he calls the area a "crucible for global terrorism".

Obama and Brown, both of whom inherited a dire situation from the previous American administration, believe a troop surge could help. More troops would probably be translated into greater destruction of Taleban enemy forces, but a complete victory in this troubled area means more than just liquidating the Taleban; it's about eliminating the conditions that produce such enemies.

For the past seven years, as part of its counter-insurgency effort, the US-led international forces have been combining offensive and defensive military operations, along with political and economic development for the country.

Quoting the counter-insurgency theorist, Bernard Fall - who wrote in 1965 that a government that is losing to an insurgency is not being outfought, it's being out-governed - Australian counter-insurgency expert David Kilcullen pointed out that in this case, the US-led international coalition and the Afghan government is being both outfought and out-governed.

To make a long story short, the international community and the Afghan government have not delivered legitimate governance to ordinary Afghans at the local level, and have thus left a vacuum for the Taleban to exploit.

Indeed, much of the effort over this past seven years has been focused on chasing the bad guys into the remote hills and mountains, and not enough effort has been put into improved governance for major clusters of the population. And where governance does exist, it is full of corruption.

There is also the question of the Taleban using Pakistan as a sanctuary, which no one seems to have good answer to. US air strikes do more to upset the local population than taking out the intended target.

Bad governance and the failure to deliver the services of the state have alienated communities on both sides of the border and pushed them towards the Taleban. It's not too late, however, to make peace with local communities and bring them over to the side of the state. But unless good services and security can be guaranteed, one can forget about winning any hearts and minds, much less in reconciling with the Taleban militants.

Given the current predicament, securing local populations via good and effective governance, rather then running up and down mountains chasing after the bad guys, makes more sense.