By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, March 13, 2014 – The top U.S. commander in
Afghanistan gave a clear vote of confidence today for Afghanistan’s national
security forces, but he noted that an enduring mission will be necessary beyond
this year.
Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., commander of the
NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, testified before the House
Armed Services Committee on progress in Afghanistan.
“After watching the Afghan forces respond to a variety of
challenges since they took the lead in June, I don’t believe the Taliban
insurgency represents an existential threat to them or the government of
Afghanistan,” he said. “I’m also confident they can secure the upcoming
presidential election in the nation’s first democratic transfer of power.”
To make the progress in Afghanistan enduring, the general
said, work remains to build the long-term sustainability of the Afghan forces.
“Although the Afghans require less support in conducting
security operations,” Dunford explained, “they still need assistance in
maturing the systems, the processes and the institutions necessary to support a
modern national army and police force.”
They also need continued support in addressing capability
gaps in aviation, intelligence and special operations, he said. “To address
these gaps” he added, “a ‘train, advise and assist’ mission will be necessary
after this year to further develop Afghan self-sustainability.”
A continued counterterrorism mission also will be needed, he
said, to ensure al-Qaida remains focused on survival and not on regeneration.
“Without continued counterterrorism pressure, an emboldened
al-Qaida will not only begin to physically reconstitute, but they will also
exploit and perceive victory to boost recruitment, fundraising and morale,”
Dunford said.
In response to a question about the size of any post-2014
force in Afghanistan, the general said NATO defense ministers had agreed on a
need for 8,000 to 12,000 NATO trainers. “A number over and above that would be
part of the counterterrorism mission,” he said. “I’m comfortable that within
that range of numbers, we can effectively conduct ‘train, advise, assist’ at
the corps level, and get after that issue of self-sustainability that I
mentioned.”
The general made it clear that he prefers a bilateral
security agreement be signed immediately, because the lack of a signed
agreement affects the confidence of the Afghan people, Afghanistan’s security
forces and partners in the region. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has thus far
refused to sign the document, which was endorsed by a national council of local
elders and leaders. In the absence of a signed agreement, President Barack
Obama has directed the Defense Department to plan for a full withdrawal of U.S.
forces from Afghanistan by the end of the year.
Still, he added, time remains before that decision needs to
be made, and military leaders can maintain options for the president in the
meantime.
“I feel like we won’t approach an area of high risk until
September,” he said. “In other words, I can maintain all options that the
president may want to select from through the summer. As you get toward
September, you enter a period of high risk, simply because of how much work has
to be done to redeploy the force and how many days you have left to do it.”
Dunford said he assumes the new Afghan president to be
elected next month will sign the agreement upon taking office, because all of
the primary candidates have said they will sign it and the agreement has
overwhelming support in Afghanistan.
The general said vital U.S. interests are best served by a
stable, secure, unified Afghanistan from which terrorism cannot emanate. “We’ve
accomplished much in pursuit of those ends,” he added. Since 9/11, Dunford
said, forces have placed extraordinary pressure on al-Qaida and extremist
networks in Afghanistan, leaving them to focus on their survival instead of
planning attacks on the West.
“With increased emphasis, beginning in 2009, we’ve focused
on developing Afghan national security forces,” he said. “Today, as a result of
those efforts, capable and competent Afghan forces are securing the Afghan
people and the gains that we’ve made over the past decade.”
Dunford also noted efforts since 9/11 to improve the daily
lives of the Afghan people, resulting in increased access to clean water,
electricity, new roads and education. “But more important than any sign of
progress in Afghanistan,” he added, “the Afghan people have something today
they didn’t have in 2001: they have hope for the future.
The gains have come at a cost, Dunford said. “We’ve paid the
price for those achievements -- 1,796 Americans and thousands more Afghans, and
members of the coalition have made the ultimate sacrifice,” he said. “We vow to
give their sacrifice meaning and to never forget them or their families.”
Dunford said some people have questioned the progress in
Afghanistan, and that they make their point by noting the overall security
situation in Afghanistan didn’t really change from 2012 to 2013.
“That’s true,” he said, “and when put into perspective, it’s
also extraordinary, because security remained roughly the same with Afghans
leading and over 50 percent of the coalition redeploying.
“I think it’s fair to ask if we’re winning in Afghanistan,”
said the general continued. “I believe the answer is yes, and several facts
allow me to say that with confidence.”
First and foremost, he said, the effort in Afghanistan has
pressured terrorist networks and has prevented another 9/11.
“Second, we’ve built Afghan security forces that, with
increasingly reduced levels of support, are capable of providing security and
denying terrorists safe haven,” Dunford said. “Third, we’re providing
stabilizing influence in the region that’s providing the time and space for a
wide range of complex issues to be addressed.”
The final result of these efforts, Dunford said, is that the
Afghan people face a decade of opportunity in which they can determine their
own future, free of the brutality and intolerance of the Taliban.
“Despite all the skepticism surrounding our mission, that
looks like winning to me,” he said.
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