McChrystal’s Grim Report: More Troops Needed Or Risk Failure In Afghanistan

Today, the Washington Post obtained the classified report by General McChrystal, the US top commander in Afghanistan. The 66 pages report was presented to defense Secretary Robert Gates at the end of August. McChrystal says, “the failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the next 12 months risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible.”

According to McChrystal, the two main worries in Afghanistan are the insurgency and the crisis in confidence. McChrystal is expected to request as many as an additional 30,000 troops from the Obama administration.

“The situation in Afghanistan is serious; neither success or failure can be taken for granted. Although considerable efforts and sacrifice have resulted in some progress, many indicators suggest the overall situation is deteriorating. We face not only a resilient and growing insurgency; there is also a crisis of confidence among Afghans, in both their government and the international community, that undermines our credibility and emboldens the insurgents. Further, a perception that our resolve is uncertain makes Afghans reluctant to align with us against the insurgents,” wrote McChrystal in the summary of his lucid and sobering assessment.

The following paragraph in General McChrystal’s report summary is even more telling.

“Additional resources are required, but focusing on force or resource requirements misses the point entirely. The key take away from this assessment is the urgent need for a change of our strategy, and the way we think and operate. NATO’s International Security Assistance Force requires a new strategy that is credible to, and sustainable by, the Afghans. This new strategy must also be properly resourced and executed through an integrated civilian-military counterinsurgency campaign that earns the support of the Afghan people and provide them with a secure environment. To execute the strategy, we must grow and improve the effectiveness of the Afghan National Security Forces and elevate the importance of governance,” wrote McChrystal.

This is where the biggest problem resides for General McChrystal, NATO and the Obama administration’s  “new strategy for success”. McChrystal is clearly, without using the words, talking about nation building and winning “hearts & minds” in Afghanistan. However, nation building is a long term process especially in the case of a country destroyed by 30 years of  wars. As far as “winning hearts and minds,” if it could not be done in the last 8 years why would it start working now? Another factor that doesn’t play in favor of a positive outcome for the Western powers in Afghanistan, beside a smart exit strategy, is the fact that the elections were a fiasco, with massive fraud, a very low turnout, and likely to re-elect the corrupt and inefficient Hamid Karzai.

To read the full report from General McChrystal click here.