NATO General Urges More Progress in Rebuilding Afghanistan
17 October 2006
Next six months crucial to success of international effort, says Richards
Washington – Recent tactical victories against Taliban forces must be followed up with a redoubled international effort to deliver on promises of reconstruction and economic development aid, says the top commander of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
“We have this window of opportunity, which we now will need to exploit,” British Army General David Richards, appearing via videoconference from Kabul, Afghanistan, told journalists at an October 17 Pentagon press briefing.
On October 5, the U.N.-mandated ISAF took over international security operations in Afghanistan. More than 31,000 service members from 37 countries constitute ISAF forces, including troops from NATO’s 26 member states, as well as troops from Albania, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Croatia, Finland, Ireland, Macedonia, New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland. The United States has dedicated more than 13,000 personnel to the ISAF mission, as well as an additional 8,000 on the trail of al-Qaida under Operation Enduring Freedom. (See related article.)
In recent months, as NATO expanded its Afghanistan mission, it confronted resurgent Taliban forces, which mistakenly questioned the alliance’s resolve to support the Afghan people as they work to rebuild their country after decades of conflict, the general said.
“We needed to prove, both to (Taliban forces) and to the people of this country… that NATO ISAF was up to the job that we had been entrusted with, building on the great work of the U.S.-led coalition," Richards said. "That meant that we had to fight, and fight we have."
In September, Richards recalled, the Afghan national army and police, supported by ISAF troops from Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States successfully pushed into the militants’ stronghold in southern Khandahar province, scoring a major victory under Operation Medusa. (See related article.)
“But having done that,” Richards added, “we are now in a position where we’ve got to build on it, because fighting for its own sake in a counterinsurgency will get us nowhere over time.”
Security risks continue to delay several large-scale projects to build roads, dams, and other key infrastructure essential to helping the country recover. For this reason, Richards said, military success now must be followed with visible progress in reconstruction and development. (See related article.)
“In 28 years of war, this country has been afflicted by huge devastation, has a huge requirement for reconstruction and development, and there's a sense of frustration,” the general said.
Richards emphasized that to keep the Afghan people's support and prevent the Taliban from taking a stronger hold, NATO forces need to show progress during the next six months. If Afghans do not see measurable improvement this winter, he warned, many who support the international effort today may choose “the rotten future offered by the Taliban.”
ISAF, working with the Afghan army and police, is launching a series of integrated nationwide operations in strategically key provinces in the coming weeks, which Richards said will be aimed at creating the necessary security conditions on the ground to let international aid projects move forward.
"If we can deliver it and we start to persuade moderate opinion -- which is still a vast majority in this country, they want us to succeed -- that we are up to it, then things could be much better by April next year,” the general said.
He added that ISAF and the Afghan government would coordinate these winter operations with Pakistani forces charged with securing the rugged Afghanistan-Pakistan border from Taliban infiltration and also would work to strengthen local law enforcement to prevent militants from returning to communities once international forces move on.
By doing so, the alliance will show the Afghan people that, “the government is working, the international community is delivering on its promises, and that NATO ISAF … is able to deliver the required security.” Richards said.
U.S. HIGHLIGHTS PROGRESS OF RECONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
In an October 17 Defense Department press release, officials highlighted the progress of several U.S.-funded construction projects in Afghanistan.
“Afghans, with assistance from the coalition and international communities, are rebuilding Afghanistan so communities can live peacefully and continue to become part of a strong nation,” coalition spokesman U.S. Army Colonel Thomas Collins said.
On October 14, the newly renovated Khayr Khot Medical Clinic opened in Paktika province. Originally built in 1999 by the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan to service the province’s Sharana district, the State Department’s U.S. Agency for International Development funded $120,000 in refurbishments.
Materials for the project were purchased from Sharana district merchants, and the project employed local labor. Since 2001, the United States has built or refurbished 338 health clinics across Afghanistan.
In addition, U.S. provincial reconstruction teams (PRTs) also donated medical equipment, including an electrocardiograph, stethoscopes, blood pressure cuffs and a surgery kit, making the clinic among the most advanced in the region, defense officials said. There are 24 PRTs active in Afghanistan. These teams bring together personnel from across U.S. military and civilian government agencies to serve as advisers to provincial authorities.
In Logar province, the U.S.-funded Black Dabor Alo School is on track for completion by winter and greatly will enhance the opportunity for district children to learn, coalition officials said. District children are currently attending classes in tents. The $169,600 construction project began in mid-March and employs 15 Afghan workers.
Meanwhile in Ghazni, construction on the Ab Band District Center Education and Administration buildings is also progressing. Started in September, the complex is scheduled for completion next spring. The total cost of the buildings, water and electrical systems and plumbing is $284,800. The project is funded by the PRTs and employs 50 local Afghans.
In partnership with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education, the United States has built or refurbished 315 schools since 2001. An additional 184 schools currently are under construction.
A transcript of the briefing, as well as the full text of the October 14 press release, is available from the Department of Defense
A fact sheet with additional information on U.S. aid to Afghanistan is available on the White House Web site.
For more information, see Rebuilding Afghanistan.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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