Officials Reaffirm Commitment to Afghan Strategy

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 27, 2012 – The rioting and killings that have followed the accidental burning of Qurans by coalition personnel will not change the NATO strategy in Afghanistan, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said today.

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are fully committed to continuing operations aimed at turning over security responsibility to Afghan forces by the end of 2014, Little said.

Panetta and Dempsey “believe we have achieved significant progress in reversing the Taliban’s momentum and in developing the Afghan security forces, and they believe that the fundamentals of our strategy remain sound,” Little said in a Pentagon news conference, joined by Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John Kirby, who spoke to the Pentagon press corps from the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Afghans rioted following the revelation that NATO forces inadvertently burned Islamic religious articles, including Qurans. Four Americans have been killed, including two officers serving as advisors in the Afghan interior ministry in Kabul.

It is important that the recent events not blind people to the progress being made in the country, Little said. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, in partnership with Afghan national security forces, is making progress in defeating al-Qaida and its terrorist allies and denying them the ability to maintain a safe haven in Afghanistan, he added.

Afghan rioting is decreasing, with only three demonstrations held today, Kirby said, noting that ISAF leaders have joined with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in urging calm and an end to violent protests.

“We appreciate the steps President Karzai is taking to quell violence in the country, and we commend the hard work and sacrifice of the Afghan security forces who have suffered casualties attempting to quell the violence,” Little said. “We respect the right of all Afghans to peaceful protest, but further bloodshed serves neither the coalition nor the Afghan people, who are themselves falling victim to violence.”

Little said the relationship between ISAF forces and their Afghan partners remains strong, pointing out that U.S. forces work with 330,000 Afghan security forces to defend the country. “Together, they fight in very difficult situations, building trust and mutual respect despite recent incidents,” the press secretary said.

The spirit of American, coalition and Afghan forces will be tested throughout the campaign in Afghanistan, Little said. “Anyone who believes they can weaken our resolve through these cowardly attacks is severely mistaken,” he added.

The coalition will emerge from the challenges stronger and more unified, Little said. “There is much at stake in Afghanistan, and our commitment to our mission and our strategy will not waver,” he said.

Panetta Supports ISAF Personnel Recall After Kabul Murders

By Cheryl Pellerin
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON  – After learning this morning of the murders of two U.S. military officers serving in Kabul, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta backed the decision to recall International Security Assistance Force-Afghanistan personnel working in ministries there, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said today.

“This act is unacceptable and the United States condemns it in the strongest possible terms,” Little said.

Initial reports indicate that an individual turned his weapon against ISAF service members in Kabul City, Afghanistan, killing two service members, according to an ISAF Joint Command statement.

It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities.

In Kabul, ISAF Commander Marine Corps. Gen. John R. Allen made the decision to protect forces by instituting the recall.

“I condemn today’s attack at the Afghan Ministry of Interior that killed two of our coalition officers, and my thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the brave individuals lost today,” Allen said in the statement.

Earlier today, Little said, Afghan Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak offered condolences in a phone call with Panetta and apologized for the incident.

“Secretary Panetta appreciated the call and urged the Afghan government to take decisive action to protect coalition forces and curtail the violence in Afghanistan after a challenging week in the country,” Little said.

Wardak told Panetta that Afghan President Hamid Karzai was assembling religious leaders, parliamentarians, justices of the Supreme Court and other senior Afghan officials to take urgent steps to take such action, Little added.

In Kabul, Allen met with Afghan Interior Minister Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, who offered condolences to the families and apologies. The minister pledged his complete cooperation in investigating the tragedy and in taking stronger measures to protect ISAF personnel.

The general said an investigation is under way and officials will pursue all leads to find the person responsible for this attack.

“The perpetrator of this attack is a coward whose actions will not go unanswered,” he said.

In an interview today from Kabul, Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John Kirby said neither the attack nor the personnel recall would deter the United States from its overarching mission in Afghanistan.

“All of the partnership and the training we’re conducting with Afghan security forces continues,” he said. “The very important work we are doing throughout the country in Afghanistan continues.”

The nation remains committed to a partnership with Afghanistan, Allen said, and to reaching “our common goal of a peaceful, stable and secure Afghanistan in the near future.”

(Elaine Sanchez of American Forces Press Service contributed to this article.)

Air Force Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of an airman who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Lt. Col. John D. Loftis, 44, of Paducah, Ky., died Feb. 25 from wounds received during an attack at the Interior Ministry, Kabul, Afghanistan.  He was assigned to the 866th Air Expeditionary Squadron, Kabul, Afghanistan.

For more information media may contact the Air Force Special Operations Command public affairs office at 850-884-8900.

Afghan President, ISAF Chief Condemn Insurgent Attacks

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From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 9, 2011 – A roadside explosion killed at least 10 people in northwestern Afghanistan’s Badghis province yesterday, marking the third day in a row during the Eid ul Adha holiday in which suspected Taliban insurgents have injured or killed innocent civilians, military officials reported.

Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, commander of the International Security Assistance Force, joined Afghan President Hamid Karzai in condemning this latest attack.

“These explosives planted by insurgents again targeted civilians, including children,” Allen said. “Their barbaric tactics have no place in society, and these enemies of peace will be held to account for killing and maiming the innocent children of this nation.”

According to the Afghan Interior Ministry, two policemen were killed in the Qadis district after their vehicle hit a mine planted by suspected Taliban insurgents. Nine civilians also were killed in the attack, including six children and two women, all from the same family. Two other policemen and another child were wounded in the explosion.

“These repeated attacks by alleged Taliban fighters are puzzling, particularly during one of the holiest celebrations of the year,” the general said. “The brutal nature of these Taliban activities demonstrates no regard for the lives and wealth of ordinary people.”

Another attack came on Nov. 7 near Pul-e Khumri at the office of Mullah Allam, a member of the Loya Jirga. A suspected Taliban suicide bomber detonated his bomb, killing himself and injuring six Afghan security force members.

On Nov. 6, seven civilians were killed and 17 others were wounded during a Taliban suicide attack at a mosque in the Jirqishlaq Hasan Tal area of Baghlan province.

Afghan and ISAF forces have made significant progress in defeating insurgent networks in recent months, officials said. Combined forces have taken back key Taliban territory across Afghanistan, and are continuing to hold it, allowing security to continue to improve.

“We have reliable information showing that large numbers of Taliban and insurgent leaders are choosing to phone in their operational orders from Pakistan, abandoning their own foot soldiers, who are left behind to conduct the fighting,” Allen said. “The leaders have fled, forced out by the overwhelming ability of Afghan and coalition forces. Perhaps these Eid holiday attacks on civilians are a sign of just how ineffective and unreliable their ‘absent leader strategy’ can be.”

Combined Afghan and coalition forces are to continue a variety of operations in the coming months to further degrade insurgent networks and create lasting peace, officials said.

“Every single Taliban and insurgent fighter should take a moment to reflect on just what is at stake, and whether the fight against peace is still worth it,” Allen said. “If they … lack leadership and direction from those who cynically command them to their deaths from the safety of foreign lands, these may be signs that there is another path -- a path toward peace.

“For any insurgent fighter who believes they have had enough of the violence,” the general continued, “we encourage them to seek out a local reintegration center, and their village and district elders to become a positive, contributing member of Afghanistan's future."

Combined Forces Conclude Response to Kabul Attack

Get the real story on what happens on the front lines in Afghanistan, told by the warriors who were there.

From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, Sept. 14, 2011 – Afghan National Security Forces, supported by coalition forces, successfully concluded an operation early today against a small group of insurgents who’d earlier attacked several locations in Kabul city, military officials reported.

Insurgents yesterday attacked the International Security Assistance Force Afghanistan headquarters and the U.S. Embassy in Kabul with small-arms fire from outside the secure zone surrounding these compounds.

Afghan National Security Forces who have the lead for security in Kabul, responded immediately, to include Afghan National Army helicopters providing air support. Afghan and coalition forces trapped the insurgents in the partially-constructed, multi-story building they were using as a firing position, and conducted a methodical, floor-by-floor clearing operation.

The Ministry of the Interior is reporting six insurgents killed in the operation.

"The people of Afghanistan have chosen a path to the future with transition," said Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, ISAF’s commander. "In this attack, the insurgency succeeded in killing Afghan civilians, once again demonstrating their bankrupt ideology, which has been rejected by the Afghan people.

“Afghan security forces responded bravely, contained the insurgents, and systematically eliminated the threat,” the general continued. “Once again, I was impressed by the courage, skill and fighting spirit of Afghan forces. The insurgency has again failed."

Current reports indicate that 6 ISAF personnel were wounded.

ISAF Condemns Insurgent Attacks in Afghanistan

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, July 28, 2011 – The International Security Assistance Force joined Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and the country’s Ministry of Interior in condemning today’s insurgent attacks in the Tarin Kot district of Afghanistan’s Uruzgan province that, according to initial reports, killed and wounded more than 50 people.

Initial reports indicate that multiple suicide bombers attacked several government buildings in Tarin Kot, the provincial capital. Reports indicate that up to 10 children were among those killed, along with women and police officers.

“Innocent Afghans lost their lives today because insurgents have a despicable, complete disregard for human life,” said Navy Rear Adm. Vic Beck, ISAF’s director of public affairs. “Our deepest sympathies are with the families and friends of those who were killed and we will work with our Afghan partners to bring those responsible to justice.”

In Afghanistan news yesterday:

-- An Afghan-led force detained a Taliban leader and one of his associates during a security operation in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province. The leader was the Taliban military commander for the district and was responsible for coordinating shipments of bomb materials.

-- In the Maiwand district of Kandahar province, a combined Afghan and coalition patrol seized a drug cache in a compound near Highway 1. The cache contained 396 pounds of hashish and 132 pounds of opium. An AK-47 rifle was also seized.

-- An Afghan-led force detained several suspects during a security operation in the Panjwa’i district of Kandahar province. The force was searching for a Taliban leader responsible for coordinating roadside bomb attacks against Afghan security forces.

-- An ISAF patrol seized a weapons cache in the Pul-e Alam district of Logar province. The cache contained nine rocket-propelled grenade rounds, four RPG boosters and one mortar tail fin.

DOD Civilians Assist Afghan Defense Agencies

By Cheryl Pellerin

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 7, 2011 – Civilians who work for the Defense Department are on the ground in Afghanistan, collaborating with counterparts there to build effective defense institutions, a defense official who heads the program said yesterday.

Kelly Uribe, who directs the two-year Ministry of Defense Advisors Program pilot effort established in 2010, works for the undersecretary of defense for policy in the partnership strategy and stability operations office.

Thirty-two advisors are in Afghanistan, and 27 more are in training and will deploy in July, she told American Forces Press Service. Ultimately, the program seeks to have 100 senior defense advisors in Afghanistan, Uribe added, with expertise in logistics and infrastructure management, personnel and readiness management, doctrine training, defense policy, acquisition, education and other areas.

The advisor program, Uribe said, “is designed to make sure that we’re developing well enough at the institutional and ministry levels [to sustain] all the investments we’ve made at the operational and technical levels.”

It’s systems that keep things going, she said, echoing the words of Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates in a May/June 2010 Foreign Affairs magazine article.

“The United States has made great strides in building up the operational capacity of its partners by training and equipping troops and mentoring them in the field,” Gates wrote.

“But there has not been enough attention paid,” he added, “to building the institutional capacity [such as defense ministries] or the human capital [including leadership skills and attitudes] needed to sustain security over the long term.”

Four elements of the advisor program make it unique in the Defense Department, Uribe said. One of these is training. A seven-week course includes five weeks in Washington for professional advisor training, cultural awareness, country familiarization, language instruction and senior-level consultations and briefings, and two weeks at Camp Atterbury in Indiana for an evaluated exercise.

Three other elements are:

-- Backfill: The program has funding to pay the parent organization to hire a temporary replacement for the deploying senior manager;

-- Reachback: Advisors can use their own contacts and call on experts from their parent organizations to help with the mission in Afghanistan; and,

-- Partnership: The long-term goal is to establish an ongoing partnership between the Defense Department in the United States and Afghanistan’s defense ministry.

“At the same time that we’re undertaking to build these effective and accountable defense institutions for our partners,” Uribe said, “we’re expanding professional opportunities for our senior DOD civilians, providing them a lot of additional training that we believe they’re going to bring back to their own organizations.”

Richard A. Pollitt, one of those senior civilians, is director of logistics at the U.S. Army Garrison in Bamburg, Germany. He is a logistics expert who has been on the ground in Afghanistan for 11 months and who just extended his stay for another four months.

“I wanted to see some of these processes and systems that we worked so hard to put in place come to fruition,” he said.

Pollitt is the senior civilian advisor to Afghan Maj. Gen. Timor Shah, chief of logistics at Afghanistan’s interior ministry.

“The program is all about developing capacity at the ministerial level,” he said, “and I’ve had a significant impact on the ministry of interior logistics system, which sustains a police force of just under 150,000.”

On a strategic level, he added, “we’ve been able to build capacity in the logistics department for developing a budget and a spend plan.”

For the first time, Pollitt said, the department has been able to identify and prioritize its requirements for the logistics department.

On an operational level, the logistics expert said, a test of a logistics readiness tool recently took place in Panjshir province. “That is a computer program that tracks unit readiness and asset visibility,” making sure all the equipment, weapons and vehicles are identified in the system’s database and accounted for, he explained.

“We worked with the Afghans, collaborated with them from the beginning, got their buy-in and asked simple questions -- what do you need, what do you want?” Pollitt added.

Such impact and success, Pollitt said, is possible only if the Afghan counterpart accepts the program advisor, a time-consuming but critical process he learned about during his seven weeks of pre-deployment training.

“It was very, very helpful coming into this type of position to have background training, particularly in the cultural area, on dealing with senior-level Afghans,” Pollitt said.

Success in Afghanistan involves building relationships, he added.

“My first six weeks, even though I’m a functional expert in logistics, I didn’t go in and start demonstrating what I knew about particular programs. I would sit there and when I was addressed I would respond,” Pollitt said. “After about six weeks, [the Afghans] started communicating and opened up dialogue and then opened up a relationship.

“Sometimes an advisor will go in and they’re not accepted,” Pollitt added. “The Afghans will be very friendly, cordial and amenable. But when it gets down to producing results or trying to set a process or procedure in place, it won’t advance very far. That relationship is critical.”

Pollitt said he knew he was accepted when Shah invited him to his home for dinner.

From the successful and growing program in Afghanistan, Uribe said, “we have demonstrated a proof of concept and hope that we can use lessons learned to take the program global.”

The scope of the program for other countries will depend on each country’s needs, she said.

“We are sending a large number of civilian advisors to Afghanistan,” the director said, but only one or two advisors might be sent to help another foreign partner.

“For example, a partner country might say, ‘We’re reworking our logistics system and would welcome an advisor from the Defense Logistics Agency to consult with us in the coming year,’” she explained.

The advisors, Uribe said, would work in close coordination with the country team on the ground.

“The main impediment right now to taking the program global is legislative authority that would allow us to operate globally,” she said. “We are seeking that.”

In the meantime, Uribe said, there are more opportunities for advisors in Afghanistan.

“The next class has to have its applications in by Sept. 1,” she said. “We’re moving into our big recruitment season over the summer to build our next class. Advisors will start training in September and deploy into Afghanistan at the beginning of November.”

Report Outlines Progress in Afghanistan

By Lisa Daniel

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2011 – Last year’s surge of U.S. and coalition forces into Afghanistan, with the simultaneous growth of Afghan forces, is leading to tangible progress for peace and prosperity in Afghanistan, according to a biannual Defense Department report released last week.

The final component of 30,000 U.S. surge forces reached Afghanistan last fall, complemented by an additional 10,000 coalition forces and more than 1,100 U.S. civilian personnel, allowing for significant improvements in security, governance and the economy of Afghanistan, according to the Report on Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan and the United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces.

Known as the “1230 Report” for its citation in the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, the report assesses the situation in Afghanistan from Oct. 1 through March 31.

Among its conclusions:

-- Additional forces have allowed the coalition to expand into 34 districts that now have Afghan local police, compared to just eight districts with local police presence in September.

-- Security has improved in each of International Security Assistance Force’s six regional commands. Afghan forces have improved such that they are in the lead for most operations in the capital of Kabul. As expected, violence has increased in the southern provinces of Helmand and Kandahar, as coalition and Afghan forces took away long-held insurgent safe havens.

-- Surveys show Taliban influence decreasing in key areas across the country, with 75 percent of Afghans believing it would be bad for the country if the extremist group returned to power. That compares to 68 percent who felt that way at the end of the last reporting period in September.

-- Reports suggest increased friction between rank-and-file insurgents in Afghanistan and their leaders in Pakistan. The national government’s Afghan Peace and Reintegration Program has allowed more than 700 former Taliban to reintegrate into Afghan society, and another 2,000 insurgents are in the process of reintegration since the office was created in July.

-- The Afghan national security forces are key to Afghan self-sufficiency, and the forces are growing in numbers and competency. The army has added 21,200 new recruits since the end of September, and the national police have 15,030 new recruits since then. Also, 30,000 members of the security forces have completed literacy training, and about 60,000 others are in literacy training on any given day.

-- The Afghan defense and interior ministries have freed up leadership billets for security forces, encouraged merit-based promotions, and recently opened armor and signals schools.

-- By the end of March, 74 percent of battalion-sized army units were rated “effective with advisors” or “effective with assistance,” compared to 51 percent at the end of September. In the national police, 75 percent of units received that rating.

-- Effectiveness has improved to the point that 95 percent of all Afghan army units and 89 percent of national police are partnered with coalition units.

-- A shortage of coalition trainers and high Afghan attrition remain challenging. Incentive programs are being created to mitigate attrition.

-- Afghanistan is showing improvements in governance and development, with about half of the population living in areas of “emerging” governance, compared to 38 percent at the end of September. The national government’s Afghan Civil Service Institute has graduated 16,000 civil servants since Oct. 1 and has placed 3,000 college graduates in its internship program.

-- Allegations of voter fraud from the September national elections continue to reverberate, but have not deterred local elections, such as one in March in which 75 percent of registered voters in Helmand’s Marja district voted.

-- A lack of infrastructure remains a challenge, but improvements are happening with public projects such as a new railway link from the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif to Uzbekistan, a new power transmission line into the Afghan capital of Kabul, a runway extension at Herat Airport, and extensive road renovations.

-- Significant political challenges remain in Afghanistan, and corruption and criminal networks are a problem, but economic development, including from foreign investors, has potential for promising gains. The demand for energy far exceeds its current supply, and the U.S. Agency for International Development oversees several projects for improvement.

-- The national government continues to develop the mining industry, which has grown by 30 percent in two years since the U.S. Geological Survey estimated Afghanistan’s untapped mineral resources to be valued at as much as $3 trillion.

The report also found significant progress in the distribution of telecommunications service, health care, and education.

“The 2010 surge of ISAF forces and civilian personnel, and the ongoing surge of [Afghan forces], has allowed ISAF to get the inputs right in Afghanistan for the first time,” the report says.

The next report is due at the end of October.

Gates Sees ‘Very Encouraging’ Progress in Afghanistan

By Karen Parrish

American Forces Press Service

COMBAT OUTPOST KOWALL, Afghanistan, March 8, 2011 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today he finds conditions here “very encouraging,” as he ended his second full day of high-level meetings, troop visits and commander briefings in Afghanistan.

Gates spoke to reporters at this outpost in the Arghandab district of southern Afghanistan’s Kandahar province after walking through the nearby village of Tabin and meeting with elders, district officials and the new crop of Afghan local police taking shape in the village.

Gates said one encouraging security indicator he’s seen on this trip is the increased integration in planning and operations between U.S. and coalition forces and their Afghan army and police counterparts. Another reason for “cautious optimism,” he added, is the growing evidence of Afghan cooperation across governmental levels and agencies, as demonstrated in the Afghan local police program.

The local police program, as U.S. officers involved with the program in Tabin and other districts explained, involves the interior ministry, the Afghan National Police, district police chiefs and village elders in a system designed to recruit, certify, train, equip and monitor local police forces that are empowered to act only in their own villages.

Gates met with village and district government representatives in Tabin today, and said he was encouraged by the sense of pride village elders displayed at having their own residents contribute to their protection.

“It’s encouraging on the ground,” he said. “It’s been encouraging watching it from Washington, but … as you’ve heard me say before, I think the closer you are to this fight, the better it looks.”

During another stop, Gates said, he learned the provincial governor had authorized a district governor in his province to hire a deputy and a couple of staff members.

“Even in that small area, they’re beginning to see Afghan civilian leadership [expand],” Gates said. “The district governor, apparently, is a very good man, but was all by himself until fairly recently.”

The secretary said he believes the pieces are coming together in Afghanistan, but that the gains still are reversible.

“The fight this spring and this summer is going to be very tough,” he said. “We expect the Taliban to try and take back much of what they’ve lost. That will really, in many respects, be the acid test of how effective the progress we’ve made is going to be.”

If coalition and Afghan forces can sustain the gains they’ve made and expand them further, Gates said, “I think it will be a powerful message.”

Trainers Aim to Increase Women’s Role in Afghan Society

By Ian Graham

Emerging Media, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Feb. 9, 2011 – Human rights has been a hot topic in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s near-medieval treatment of Afghan girls and women became known. Now that Afghanistan is working toward a more modern society and government, the rights of the nation’s female population are moving front and center for those in charge of NATO Training Mission Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan.

In a “DOD Live” bloggers roundtable today, Jack Kem, deputy to the training organizations’ commander, discussed gender initiatives in the Afghan security force and how coalition trainers are working with the Afghan interior defense ministries on initiatives to develop education opportunities and increase the number of women in professional roles.

“The government of Afghanistan reiterated its commitment to protect and promote the human rights of all Afghan citizens, and to make Afghanistan a place where men and women enjoy security, equal rights and equal opportunities in all spheres of life,” Kem said, quoting a communiqué from the United Nations’ London Conference on Afghanistan in January 2010.

Afghanistan has some history of promoting human rights prior to the Taliban regime and since the Taliban’s removal from power, Kem noted. It was one of the first nations to sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948; it signed the United Nations’ convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and supports implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, which addresses women’s rights and their role in maintaining peace.In fact, Kem said, the training effort falls directly in line with the Afghan constitution.

“Our effort to support gender and human rights in Afghanistan is consistent with a number of international and Afghan documents,” he said. “Most importantly, Article 22 of the Afghan constitution states: ‘The citizens of Afghanistan, whether man or woman, has equal rights and duties before the law.’”

Kem said the plan is based around “gender mainstreaming,” a strategy to promote gender equality. Officials want to increase the number of women in higher education and in the Afghan police and military forces.

“The Afghan National Development Strategy details the Afghan government’s gender equity strategy to address and reverse women’s historical disadvantages,” he said.

Some attitudes will need to change in the country, Kem said, but those are in the minority. Three recent surveys done by the U.N., nongovernment organizations and media groups have shown a trend among Afghans toward an equal role for women and men in Afghan society.

“Each of those polls consistently shows there is support in the Afghan population for girls and women going to school and being able to work,” Kem said. “There are some differences in the south, where there’s a more conservative attitude, but across the board, the majority of the Afghan population supports girls and women being able to go to work and being able to go to school, and I think that’s very significant.”

Kem also said the NATO training mission’s gender mainstreaming plan has seen quantifiable advances. The command intends to have 5,000 women in the Afghan National Police by 2014, compared to between 1,000 and 1,200 today. It makes sense culturally to have women working in certain situations, he said, especially at airports and border crossing points, where women could be searched.

“There’s a great acceptance for women in particular roles,” Kem said. “In both the army and police, we’ve worked to enhance some of the opportunities that exist for women. There’s been some coding … for positions so that men and women are eligible to operate in them. For example, we’re finding particularly in personnel and logistics fields, they’re wide open for women.”

The numbers are small now, Kem said, but they are growing. He added that the second Afghan army officer candidate school is in session. In October, the first women graduated from Afghanistan’s OCS, and four of them now are preparing to attend school to become pilots.

“We’re very hopeful that we will continue to have women have a larger role [in the Afghan security forces],” Kem said. “But the idea is you have to start from the ground up. There weren’t many women before, we’re taking in more and more recruits in the police and the army, [and] we’re also taking in more officers.”

Kem said women hold high-ranking roles in the Afghan interior and defense ministries. In the defense ministry, a new office is opening to oversee military gender integration and mitigate any problems. A colonel will oversee the new office, and that colonel will be a woman, Kem said.

“There is good acceptance, but the numbers are small, and we’re trying to do it in such a way that are irreversible and put women into roles that are important, critical and will last for many years,” he said. “So, even though it is slow, it’s significant to see some of the movement that’s been made in the past 15 months.”

Civilian Program Mentors Afghan Defense Counterparts

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7, 2011 – There’s more to building an army than training soldiers, and Defense Department civilians are stepping to the fore to help Afghan counterparts learn how to run a military establishment.

DOD established the Ministry of Defense Advisors Program in 2009 to address a basic issue NATO faces in Afghanistan: How to effect a smooth transition of security responsibility to Afghan security forces, said James A. Schear, deputy assistant secretary of defense for partnership strategy and stability operations.

“Training the Afghan army and police is part of the equation, but so is the encouragement and development of competent ministerial institutions to oversee the transition and sustain the force over time,” Schear said in an interview.

Civilians bring expertise across a wide range of skill sets ranging from financial management to personnel policy to acquisition and logistics. These are skills that DOD civilians can best teach to their Afghan counterparts, he said. The program is part of the Civilian Expeditionary Workforce initiative and is aimed at civilians in grades GS-13 and above.

The first group of DOD civilians deployed last year, drawn from the department’s 700,000 civilian employees, Schear explained.

“It’s a terrific talent pool to draw from,” he said. “If you are an Afghan minister, you can look at them and say, ‘These are people who bring talents to build my office, my staff, my department,’” he added.

A uniformed officer is an asset in Afghanistan, Schear noted, but a DOD civilian sends a message of commitment to Afghan leaders. “With a contractor, the question often becomes, ‘Who are you working for, and how flexible are you?’” he said. “We think civilians are a very good fit.”

A strong demand exists for the advisors, and they form an integral part of the NATO and U.S. strategy in Afghanistan. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan, wants the advisors to make up about a third of the personnel in the ministries in 2011. They constitute about 5 percent today.

If chosen, employees go through a seven-week training session in Washington and at Camp Atterbury, Ind. Schear said those chosen already have the technical expertise, and that the training helps them to build their mentoring skills and immerses them in Afghanistan’s culture and history.

The training addresses hard problems, he added, such as corruption and the drug trade.

“It’s not a flashy job,” Schear said. “They have to blend in and work effectively behind the scenes and promote Afghan ownership of the result. You have to be practical and flexible, and you have to be in listening mode and to be very practical in your advice with the knowledge of what can be absorbed in an Afghan reality.”

Once deployed, the advisors work with NATO Training Mission Afghanistan for a year and can extend for another year. A temporary-backfill mechanism is in place so the volunteers’ offices in the United States will release them to deploy. “We’re going after high-quality people,” Schear said.

The advisors –- most with between 15 and 20 years of experience –- can “reach back” to their organizations to get help, advice or any resources the ministries may need, he added.

Schear emphasized that volunteers need to be flexible. “We’ve had people go in because of one skill set and find they end up doing something else,” he said.

The program has applicability elsewhere, providing a capability Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates deems important.

“Right now it is mainly Afghanistan-focused,” Schear said, “but Defense Secretary Gates has stressed the need for capacity building in a broader strategic context of working with partners in the developing world and regions that are susceptible to instability. Developing responsible, responsive defense ministries is key to that.”

Multi-National Operation Nets $55.9 Million Heroin Seizure in Afghanistan

First-ever joint mission for DEA, Afghan, and Russian drug agents nets nearly one metric ton of drugs

OCT 29 -- A multinational DEA operation led to the seizure of $55.9 million in heroin at four clandestine laboratories located in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan. The nearly one metric ton of narcotics was seized as a result of a large-scale joint narcotics enforcement operation by DEA, Afghan, and Russian anti-drug agents in Afghanistan.

Members of the U.S. military’s 101st Airborne Division, along with ISAF, took part in “Operation Tar Pit.”

Acting on DEA intelligence, the multinational task force was able to identify a major clandestine heroin laboratory in the Zerasari Village of the Achin District. Upon arrival at the site, agents discovered three additional labs hidden by vegetation. Evidence collected confirmed that all of the labs were actively producing heroin and morphine.

“Thanks to the close cooperation among DEA, Afghan, and Russian anti-drug personnel as well as U.S. Military and ISAF in Afghanistan, one metric ton of heroin was seized from four clandestine laboratories along with various precursor chemicals. Operation Tar Pit was a significant enforcement success due to the fearsome force multiplier arrayed against the narco-traffickers and insurgents,” said DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Leonhart. “This nearly $60 million worth of heroin seized in Afghanistan will never find its way to vulnerable communities around the world.”

In addition to 932 kilograms of heroin and 156 kilograms of opium seized, the following precursor chemicals and materials were also confiscated: 10 liters of acetic anhydride, 15 kilograms of ammonium chloride, 10 kilograms of soda ash, 40 kilograms of charcoal, two mechanical heroin presses, three metal industrial cooking vats, and 500 feet of plastic irrigation equipment.‪

An investigation into the drug trafficking organization responsible for operating the clandestine heroin labs is ongoing.

Training Puts Afghan Police on Track to Take Over Security

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 21, 2010 – Significant progress over the last year in training the Afghan National Police has put Afghanistan’s interior ministry on track to care for its country’s own security by 2014, a senior official involved in the training effort said today.

Maj. Gen. Stuart Beare of the Canadian army, deputy commanding general for police at NATO Training Mission Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, briefed Pentagon reporters via teleconference from the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Beare said he’s impressed by the scope of the intervention playing out across the International Security Assistance Force mission, especially in the training mission for the “comprehensive development of the Afghan security forces, both army and police, from the [interior] ministry to the troops in the field.”

“I'm also struck by the scale of the intervention in terms of the quality of people and the amount of people that we are now covering down on or using to cover down on -- ministries, institutional systems, training centers and partnering in the field -- and the amount of money that is being applied to that to make it all work,” Beare said.

In terms of strength, the police force numbers have risen from 95,000 to nearly 120,000 in less than 12 months. The Afghan police force comprises uniformed police, border police, civil order police, the anti-crime police forces and the Afghan public protection forces.

“We're on track to growing the forces entirely to 134,000 by this time next year,” Beare said. “And we know we have the capacity in our training system to do that. We know we have the recruiting base to achieve that. And we've taken on enough trainers to be able to continue to deliver that.” More trainers will be needed, however, to grow and sustain the force beyond 2011, he added.

The challenge of growing and “professionalizing” the Afghan police force also depends on the effectiveness of ongoing anticorruption efforts in Afghanistan, Beare said, noting that Interior Minister Gen. Bismillah Mohammadi has six priorities for the police force: training and education, leadership, anticorruption, taking care of the force, structure reform, and using a reward-and-punishment system.

Each one of those priorities, Beare said, has an anticorruption effect. But he acknowledged that in spite of its rapid progress, the Afghan police force is not yet ready to take charge.

“They're counting on us to continue to assist them in their development at the ministerial level [and] to assist them in the creation of their institutional systems that connect that ministry to its operational police forces,” Beare said. “They're counting on us to work with them and partner with them in training their police forces, including professionalizing their training base, their police training base -- that is, bringing on Afghan leaders into their training system and bringing on many more Afghan instructors.”

Beare said the interior ministry’s capacity to move forward in assuming more responsibility and authority for managing its affairs grows every day. And the Afghan people are noticing that NATO is working with their police force similarly to how their army was trained, he added.

As the Afghan police force becomes professional and more

operationally effective, especially with such forces as the Afghan National Civil Order Police, its credibility increases, the general told reporters.

An important factor in the growth of the police force is Afghans’ willingness to join. Beare said the plan calls for recruiting and training about 50,000 more people to grow the force from 120,000 to 135,000, accounting for attrition.

Afghans want to be a part of their national security force for several reasons, Beare said. They want to protect their fellow citizens, find a vocation in life or an opportunity for employment, and take advantage of what for many is the best opportunity for education and literacy.

“We're achieving great success through their basic training experience in terms of the numbers who graduate against the numbers that join, to the tune of about 90 percent,” Beare said. “We're recruiting about 1,800 a month for the police, and we're going to raise that number so that we can continue to grow police forces like the Afghan National Civil Order Police, and we can grow substantially over the course of the next year as well.”

Adding more trainers is key to the success of growing the force, Beare said. The existing 650 trainers comprise military police, military contemporary forces, civil police and gendarme. There is a need, however, for 900 positions by spring in the training base and the institutional base, he said, to sustain the progress that has been made.

“We can get from here to there with what we have today,” Beare said. “And if we don't get [additional trainers to sustain progress], we're going to have to find ways to be able to continue to deliver on the quantity we're looking for and still invest in the quality without stepping back on either.”