Equipped with only light armour, these horsemen were unable to hold terrain or to stand on the defensive.
He said that his men could make forays into Taliban areas but that they could not hold terrain.
"Certainly when they hold terrain, it makes training more safe and secure than on disputed terrain; therefore, more and better training," said one senior American military official.
There has been a series of attacks in recent months that suggests a new offensive spirit, though not necessarily the capacity to take and hold terrain.
"What we can offer, or make a reasonable inferences from, is that where the terrorists are holding terrain they are controlling everything that goes through it, including the trafficking of whatever — whether it's weapons or drugs".
"Limiting our advisors to headquarters buildings will not help newly trained Iraqi and Syrian opposition forces hold terrain, much less defeat ISIL in the field," he said, referring to the Islamic State.
After two years of Calderón's military offensive against the cartels, and 20 years since their "federation" fell apart and they began fighting one another, no one can predict an outcome, but one partial result is clear: the cartel and the Zetas have held their terrain and are broadening it, despite the high-profile arrests of key members of the group such as Jaime González Durán, alias "El Hummer".
Crucially, the Zetas hold their terrain absolutely and its location in north-eastern Mexico affords access to Houston, which the FBI, briefing the Observer last week, called "the hub city" for alliances with local gangs – the old "Texas Syndicate" and loose-knit "Tango Blast".
The Germans still held the commanding terrain of the Verrières Ridge, 5 mile south of the city.
The focus groups were held on 'neutral' terrain (VU medical center) and took two hours.
Government forces have made some limited progress around the southern edge of Aleppo in the north, and could use that as a springboard for further inroads into rebel-held terrain if they can marshal the resources.
