Afghanistan Mission Creep Watch Posted by Michael Cohen

In today's edition of Afghanistan Mission Creep Watch we see a mismatch between operations and the strategy laid out by the President (or at least an overemphasis on building up the Afghan government's credibility) and a complete lack of resources to do population-centric counter-insurgency, particularly when it comes to Afghan troops. If we don't have civilian development and post-conflict reconstruction experts or indigenous Afghan soldiers then how exactly are we supposed to maximize any security gains made in Afghanistan?

President Barack Obama, March 27th, 2009, describing the new US strategy for Afghanistan/Pakistan

We are not in Afghanistan to control that country or to dictate its future . . .I want the American people to understand that we have a clear and focused goal:  to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to prevent their return to either country in the future.  That's the goal that must be achieved.

Soldiers and Marines will take the fight to the Taliban in the south and the east, and give us a greater capacity to partner with Afghan security forces and to go after insurgents along the border.

From today's Washington Post about the Marine counter-insurgency currently taking place in Helmand Province in Afghanistan.

Brig. Gen. Lawrence D. Nicholson, said his Marines will focus their efforts on protecting civilians from the Taliban and on restoring Afghan government services, instead of mounting a series of hunt-and-kill missions against the insurgents.

"Our focus is not the Taliban," Nicholson told his officers. "Our focus must be on getting this government back up on its feet."

President Barack Obama, March 27th, 2009, describing his plans for a civilian surge in Afghanistan:

And that's why I'm ordering a substantial increase in our civilians on the ground.  At a time of economic crisis, it's tempting to believe that we can shortchange this civilian effort.  But make no mistake: Our efforts will fail in Afghanistan and Pakistan if we don't invest in their future.  These investments relieve the burden on our troops.  They contribute directly to security.  They make the American people safer.  And they save us an enormous amount of money in the long run -- because it's far cheaper to train a policeman to secure his or her own village than to help a farmer seed a crop -- or to help a farmer seed a crop than it is to send our troops to fight tour after tour of duty with no transition to Afghan responsibility.

Today's Washington Post:

The Marines have also been vexed by a lack of Afghan security forces and a near-total absence of additional U.S. civilian reconstruction personnel. Nicholson had hoped that his brigade, which has about 11,000 Marines and sailors, would be able to conduct operations with a similar number of Afghan soldiers. But thus far, the Marines have been allotted only about 500 Afghan soldiers, which he deems "a critical vulnerability."

State has added only two officers in Helmand since the Marines arrived. State has promised to have a dozen more diplomats and reconstruction experts working with the Marines, but only by the end of the summer.

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