Fact Sheet - Dangers of Accelerated Drawdown in Afghanistan (1)

8/2/2019 Fact Sheet - Dangers of Accelerated Drawdown in Afghanistan (1)

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The Dangers of an Accelerated Drawdown in Afghanistan:What Americas Civilian and Military Leaders are Saying

March 23, 2012

General John R. Allen, Commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan (USFOR-A) and the NATO-led

International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy,

Dr. James N. Miller, testified before Congress this week, resulting in an intensified public debate

regarding the future of the War in Afghanistan. The Foreign Policy Initiative (FPI) believes the

following quotes help to explain the case for strong, continued commitment in Afghanistan, with

a post-2012 presence of at least 68,000 U.S. troops to support a comprehensive counter-

insurgency campaign.

On the Impact of Troop Withdrawals on the Hard-Fought Gains in Afghanistan

Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee: Tosustain this fragile process its critical that President Obama resist the shortsighted calls for

additional troop reductions, which are a guarantee of failure. Our forces are currently slated to

draw down to 68,000 by September [2012], a faster pace than our military commanders

recommended, which has significantly increased the risk for our mission. At a minimum, there

should be a pause after September to assess the impact of the drawdown. It would be much

better to maintain the 68,000 forces through the next years fighting season, probably longer.

(March 22, 2012)

General John R. Allen (USMC), Commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan and the NATO-ledInternational Security Assistance Force: My opinion is that we will need significant combatpower [in Afghanistan] in 2013, sir.

Senator John McCain (R-AZ): Like 68,000 [U.S. troops]?

General Allen: Sixty-eight thousand is a good going in number, sir, but I owe the president someanalysis on that. (March 22, 2012)

Congressman Howard Buck McKeon (R-CA), Chairman of the House Armed ServicesCommittee: I remain very concerned about the Presidents decision last summer to speed up

withdrawal of the surge troops from Afghanistan, as well as his original announcement in hisspeech at West Point for a date certain in 2014 to withdraw all U.S. combat forces. These

decisions by the President have made it increasingly difficult to build up trust and confidence

with the Afghan institutions that will ultimately ensure that the security and political gains by U.S.

and NATO efforts are sustained into the future. Moreover, with our eyes at the exits, Im

uncertain whether we will be able to achieve the key tenets of the Presidents own strategy due

to the constraints that the President himself has put in place. (March 20, 2012)
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General Jack Keane (USA, Ret.): No matter where you go in Afghanistan, talking withgovernment officials, military leaders, district governors, and sub-district governors the major

takeaway is the serious concern about the United States commitment as it pertains to

Afghanistan. (February 22, 2012)

American Enterprise Institutes Frederick Kagan and Institute for the Study of Wars Kimberly

Kagan: The reality is that there are two hard fighting seasons worth of combat in EasternAfghanistan before we can transition the problem to the Afghans and focus on assisting them.

And it will take all of the 68,000 U.S. troops that will remain at the end of this year to do it. The

fight is worth iteliminating the safe havens of groups that would give sanctuary to al-Qaeda

was what we came to Afghanistan to do in the first place. And it is achievable, even if the

constraints President Obama has placed on our troops by imposing arbitrary and unjustifiable

force caps on them make it much more difficult, dangerous, and protracted than it need be.

(February 2, 2012)

On the Strength of the Afghan Security Forces

General John R. Allen: [A]s the potential unifying influence in Afghanistan, the Afghan forces arebetter than we thought they were, and theyre better than they thought they were when tried in

combat. So as we move them to the fore, theyre gaining more and more confidence and

theyre gaining more and more capability. In the past five months 89 percent of the total

conventional operations were partnered with both coalition and Afghan forces and 42 percent

were Afghan led. (March 20, 2012)

General James Mattis (USMC), Commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM): So, as westand up using our conventional and Special Forces, the Afghan Security Forces, they are the

ones who will carry more of the load. The Afghan forces will. But we do not want to simply pullthe training wheels off. We dont want to pull off the people who have been called in, close

sheriff support for them, and say, Youre on your own. (March 7, 2012)

Brookings Institutions Michael OHanlon and Bruce Riedel: By 2014, ISAF is to have completed

the transition to giving Afghan forces lead responsibility nationwide and in fact that process may

be accelerated to 2013. But, it cannot be accelerated to 2012 nationwide, because the

Afghans are not yet strong enough and the east remains too troubled for them to handle the

job on their own. (February 15, 2012)

On Important Security Gains Achieved by U.S. and Allied Forces

Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Joseph I. Lieberman (ID-CT) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC):Significant military progress has been made in Afghanistanprogress that we have personally

witnessed over repeated visits. Four years ago, southern Afghanistan was overrun by the

Taliban, and our coalition lacked the resources and the strategy necessary to break their

momentum. Today, that situation has been reversed, thanks to the presidents surge of forces,

the leadership of talented military commanders, and the courage and perseverance of our
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troops. (March 22, 2012)

General John R. Allen: We have severely degraded the insurgency. As one Afghancommander told me in the south, in the latter part of 2011, This time around the Afghan Taliban

were the away team. On top of that success, as a result of our recent winter operations, wehave seriously degraded the Talibans ability to mount a major spring offensive of their own. This

spring they will come back to find many of their caches empty, their former strongholds

untenable, and a good many of their foot soldiers absent or unwilling to join the fight. (March

20, 2012)

Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee:There has been considerable progress made throughout the country, and I am aware the

progress made was because of the bravery, leadership and considerable efforts of our troops

and our ISAF partners. We have pushed the Taliban back, particularly in the south. Those of us

who have traveled there regularly could tangibly see the improvements. The villages that were

able to walk through that were major combat zones just a few months before is evidence of the

hard work and the progress that is being made. (March 20, 2012)

Major Fernando Lujn (US Army Special Forces), Visiting Fellow at the Center for a New AmericanSecurity: The southern provinces of Kandahar and Helmand were ground zero for the 2010Afghan surge and the area where we devoted the full weight of our resources and resolve. The

headlines hide deeper trends in places where the Taliban until recently enjoyed uncontested

rule. Riding around with Afghan soldiers from dozens of different units, we heard one message

everywhere: Last year we couldnt even move out of the front gate without being shot or

blown up. Now we control as far as you can see. (September 28, 2011)

On Afghanistans Importance to U.S. National Security

General John R. Allen: [W]ith a stable Afghanistan, Americans are safer. With us in hot pursuit ofal-Qaeda, Americans are safer. So I believe that Americans can see that the results of the

sacrifices that have been made by the American people to resource this was have in many

respectsin many respects a direct-line relationship to 11 September 2001 where unimpeded,

the Taliban provided safe haven to al-Qaeda, which plotted and ultimately executed the

attack upon the United States on that day from the safety of Afghanistan. (March 20, 2012)

Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL): If the United States were to withdraw troops without securing stability[in Afghanistan], America would leave prime breeding ground for insurgents and terrorists to re-

inhabit and plan further attacks against the West. (December 13, 2011)

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta: [W]e just celebrated the tenth anniversary of September 11.We were attacked. This country was attacked and a lot of people died as a result of that
http://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressOffice.OpEds&ContentRecord_id=3a7aaf05-ddcc-9377-fccb-c2b3e6cb49ad&Region_id=&Issue_id=http://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressOffice.OpEds&ContentRecord_id=3a7aaf05-ddcc-9377-fccb-c2b3e6cb49ad&Region_id=&Issue_id=http://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressOffice.OpEds&ContentRecord_id=3a7aaf05-ddcc-9377-fccb-c2b3e6cb49ad&Region_id=&Issue_id=http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/28/opinion/this-war-can-still-be-won.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/28/opinion/this-war-can-still-be-won.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/28/opinion/this-war-can-still-be-won.html?_r=1http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://www.foreignpolicyi.org/files/uploads/images/2011%20FPI%20Forum%20Key%20Quotes.pdfhttp://www.foreignpolicyi.org/files/uploads/images/2011%20FPI%20Forum%20Key%20Quotes.pdfhttp://www.foreignpolicyi.org/files/uploads/images/2011%20FPI%20Forum%20Key%20Quotes.pdfhttp://www.foreignpolicyi.org/files/uploads/images/2011%20FPI%20Forum%20Key%20Quotes.pdfhttp://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/28/opinion/this-war-can-still-be-won.html?_r=1http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://armedservices.house.gov/index.cfm/hearings-display?ContentRecord_id=52cb2b7d-c64b-4fac-ba71-2106b22f82ce&ContentType_id=14f995b9-dfa5-407a-9d35-56cc7152a7ed&Group_id=64562e79-731a-4ac6-aab0-7bd8d1b7e890http://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressOffice.OpEds&ContentRecord_id=3a7aaf05-ddcc-9377-fccb-c2b3e6cb49ad&Region_id=&Issue_id=


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attack. We had a responsibility to respond to that. What we have to do now is to make sure

that places like Afghanistan and Pakistan dont become safe havens so that al-Qaeda can

again plan those kinds of attacks against the United States, particularly with regards to

Afghanistan. (September 22, 2011)
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Fact Sheet - Dangers of Accelerated Drawdown in Afghanistan (1)