October 7, 2009 marked eight years since the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. For the first time since 2001, a serious debate is underway about our interests and objectives in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Just as General McChrystal is presenting his request for 40,000 - 60,000 additional U.S. forces to wage an enhanced counter-insurgency campaign, an election crisis in Afghanistan and deteriorating security have created a crisis of confidence among the Afghan, American, and European populations.
How are Afghans and Pakistanis reacting to this debate? Is there support on the ground for a robust counter-insurgency that would entail more foreign troops? How would citizens of both countries react to the perception that the U.S. is beginning to drawn down its presence? Would a more narrow counter-terrorism mission encourage or inflame local perceptions?
Please join us for a lively discussion of these issues.
Ambassador Jawad returned to Afghanistan after 9/11 to assist in the state-building process, where he played a versatile and crucial role in the government, serving as President Karzai's press secretary, chief of staff and director of the Office of International Relations. He has served as Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States since December 2003.
Imran Ahmad Khan is the president and co-founder of the Transnational Crisis Project. Mr. Khan is an expert in transnational security, strategic communications, Islamic radicalization and counter-radicalization, and has held a wide range of business and policy positions around the world.
Haseeb Humayoon is a Kabul native who recently served as a communications and operations adviser to Afghanistan's domestic election observers group, the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan. Currently in Washington, he is an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and has worked on several Afghanistan-based projects with organizations such as the Human Rights Watch, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Human Rights First and the Centre for Conflict and Peace Studies.
Links:
[1] http://www.usip.org/specialists/j-alexander-thier
[2] http://www.usip.org/newsroom/multimedia/audio/the-afghanistan-debate-perspectives-afghanistan-and-pakistan
[3] http://www.usip.org/resources/afghanistan-policy-the-crossroads