If I was still in Washington, and not totally and completely consumed and overwhelmed by life and work in Iraq, I would have probably written about 18 posts in the past two weeks about the ongoing Afghanistan debate. I have gotten so far behind in said debate, that I feel it is impossible to catch up as most bloggers, public policy and think tank wonks, politicians and academics write an average of 10 articles a day on it.
But after reading Steve Coll’s (one of my top five favorite people of all time) recent article, “Humility in Afghanistan” in Foreign Policy I could not resist writing a post. In this highly evidenced article, Coll addresses arguments for and against our commitment there and offers important practical solutions for improving the situation, mostly in the form of political negotiations, Afghan style. His article is believable because even though he advocates a continued commitment, he is willing to admit that it might not work. He also addresses Rory Stewart’s article in the London Review of Books, “Irresistible Illusion” from a couple months ago, which resulted in probably the longest post I have ever written. The point in Stewart’s article that really got me was his criticism of how the U.S. frames its policies in Afghanistan in flowery, unrealistic, ideological terms. Coll admits that this is the wrong path; it’s been tried in the past and failed. Stewart, however, reaches the conclusion that this flowery rhetoric is emblematic of our inapplicable on the ground strategy, whereas Coll says drop the talk and start the action: “To succeed, counterinsurgency approaches require deep, supple, and adaptive understanding of local conditions.” Whether this is possible, however, is debatable.
Tom Ricks cites another important highly respected Central Asia scholar’s practical ideas for improving the situation in Afghanistan here: securing the trade routes linking South and Central Asia. Steven Biddle argues against the ‘middle way’ here.
With Steve Coll pulling me one way, and Sarah Chayes and Rory Stewart another, I am one torn Taliba.
