IN TWO months, the Obama administration will announce critical choices about the next phase of its Afghanistan strategy: how to begin drawing down US forces so Afghans can assume greater responsibility for their own country. We know the transition will take time, and many believe it won’t be finished by 2014, the date President Hamid Karzai says he wants full control of his country.
Deciding the steps ahead ultimately is a decision only President Obama can make. But making the right recommendations — informed by a thorough debate — is our collective responsibility, and particularly the responsibility of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Forty years ago last month, I testified in front of the committee about a war that had to end. Today I chair that committee, and this week I’m launching another series of comprehensive hearings to examine a war the president has already decided will end. The goal is to study every question and ultimately articulate a policy of how that war should end in a way that makes America stronger.
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The hearings will challenge any lingering assumption that the conflict will have a quick and decisive end. The truth is that there is no purely military victory possible in Afghanistan, despite the skill and sacrifice of our troops. What we face is a political resolution that could deteriorate into civil war unless we accept some basic truths and adjust our tactics accordingly.
http://articles.boston.com/2011-05-01/bostonglobe/29493737_1_afghan-police-afghanistan-strategy-president-hamid-karzaiThese hearings, the first one tomorrow at 10 am, will be fascinating. The last paragraph I quoted is the last paragraph in the op-ed. That and the reference to his own history and his description of Obama's position suggest to me that the hearings will support the drawn down. I wonder what the shift from Gates to Panetta might mean - if anything - to the likelihood of real draw down in the number of troops. (There is a hearing on Pakistan on May 5 at 10am - which should be fascinating given the involvement (or non-involvement) of Pakistan in the killing of OBL. )
Here is Kerry's comment on the killing of OBL.
U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said the death of bin Laden “closes an important chapter in our war against extremists” who kill and maim innocent people.
“We are a nation of peace and laws, and people everywhere should understand that our ten-year manhunt was in search of justice, not revenge,” Kerry said in a statement issued shortly after Obama’s address.
“Terrorists everywhere must never doubt that the United States will hunt them down no matter where they are, no matter how long it takes,” Kerry said.
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2011/05/osama_bin_laden_is_dead_but_th.html
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