Hamid Karzai and Peace in Afghanistan
Afghan President Hamid Karzai believes that his government has to negotiate with the Taliban in order to win the war.
Afghanistan
US Military: Give Us More Time
The armed forces in Afghanistan are begging the administration for more time in order to implement its new counterinsurgency strategy.
General Petraeus on Winning in Afghanistan
In his first interview since taking over as commander in Afghanistan, General Petraeus discussed his strategy on Meet the Press.
Evidence of War Crimes? Not Really
There is little news to be gathered from the classified Afghan war reports released by WikiLeaks.
Preparing for Defeat in Afghanistan
Instead of internationalizing the war effort or learning from previous counterinsurgencies, the United States will abandon Afghanistan.
NATO Allies Weary About Future Afghan Mission
Skepticism about the war effort in Afghanistan is mounting.
The Afghan Silk Route: A Pipe Dream?
Afghanistan, situated in the heart of Asia, has for centuries been pivotal to international transport and trade. The argument is made today that for Afghanistan to prosper, it has to reinvent itself as the hub of a modern day “Silk Route” connecting Europe, the Middle East, India and East Asia. The future of Afghanistan, once […]
British Withdrawing from Sangin, Afghanistan
The United Kingdom will withdraw parts of its forces from the hotly contested Helmand Province in Afghanistan later this year. The region around the town of Sangin, notorious as a Taliban powerbase and a center of the opium trade in the south of the country, has seen heavy fighting in recent months, demanding several casualties […]
A Change in Personnel, Not in Policy
General Stanley McChrystal’s replacement reflects a “change in personnel,” according to the president, “not in policy.”
Don’t Pick Pakistan Over India!
India’s objectives in Afghanistan are aligned with America’s. Pakistan’s are not.
NATO After Afghanistan
“NATO is much more than Afghanistan,” former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told the Atlantic Council on May 19. Supreme Allied Commander Admiral Jim Stravidis agreed, noting that although Afghanistan is important, the alliance is a “very, very active” fighting force engaged in missions all over the world. Albright was invited by Secretary General […]
Kandahar Awaits ISAF Offensive
The Taliban claimed responsibility on Sunday for a nighttime assault on NATO’s largest base in southern Afghanistan. In the second such an attack on a major ISAF installation in one week, insurgents launched rockets, mortar fire and automatic weapons while attempting to storm Kandahar Air Field. Foreign Secretary William Hague of the United Kingdom and […]
Are the Taliban Getting Stronger?
The Pentagon recently reported to Congress (PDF) that violence in Afghanistan between October 2009 and March of this year has risen sharply, with so much as 87 percent in fact compared to the same period last year. Insurgent attacks increased throughout 2009 to peak in August just before the country’s presidential election. Most activity has […]
German Soldiers in Afghanistan Protest
Defense Tech reports that German soldiers in Afghanistan are silently protesting against the perceived ambiguity of their mission’s purpose by snapping up patches that read “I fight for Merkel.” The patches, technically illegal, are a big seller among German soldiers at Mazār-e Sharīf. The country’s ISAF forces have been hit hard in recent weeks, losing […]
Internationalizing Afghanistan
There was some troubling news coming out of Kabul last week. Afghan President Hamid Karzai not only invited his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to come visit; he supposedly told guests at the presidential palace recently that the Americans had invaded his country in order to dominate the region and that as such, they pose an […]