1. Director, Defense Operations
NATO Operations in Afghanistan
Steven Mirr
Director, Defense Operations
US Mission to NATO

2. ISAF Mission Mission: Desired Military End-state:
Assist the Afghan government to establish and maintain security;
Facilitate the development of Afghan government structures;
Extend Afghan government control;
Assist reconstruction and humanitarian efforts
Desired Military End-state:
Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) are able to provide security and sustain stability in Afghanistan without NATO support

3. Political Overview Lack of self confidence
Regional, tribal, ethnic and sectarian groupings
Weak state structure
Loose link between Central and Regional Governments
Lack of experience & professionalism
Underlying dynamic of the national economy is the drug trade
The Afghan people suffer from a severe lack of self-confidence. The long years of conflict has divided the Afghan society into regional, tribal, ethnic and sectarian groups. Efforts aimed at tailoring an Afghan nation will require a long time. 
* The state structure is hampered by inherent weaknesses. The links between the central government and the regional government authorities are impaired. Governing on an insufficient line of communications, both the president and the government have a very light footprint in the provinces. The cabinet ministers, on the other hand, are disadvantaged by lack of capacity and inexperience. They do not fully appreciate the current state of the population, nor do they exert any considerable effort to this end.  
* Afghanistan is among the least developed and impoverished countries in the world. Cultivation and trafficking of drugs constitute the underlying dynamic of the national economy.  
* Respect for human rights, upholding the rule of law, political party interface-all indispensable elements of democracies- are not fully functioning.  
* Lack of experience and professionalism of the civil servants pave the way for corruption, mismanagement, ethnic discrimination, and cronyism at the provincial level, thus undermining effective governance.

4. Threat Assessment Against greater government authority:
Lack of basic security mechanisms
Criminality and lawlessness
Corruption
Porous borders
Opposing militant forces
Illegal narcotics
Rule of law is slowly being imposed
The Afghan people suffer from a severe lack of self-confidence. The long years of conflict has divided the Afghan society into regional, tribal, ethnic and sectarian groups. Efforts aimed at tailoring an Afghan nation will require a long time. 
* The state structure is hampered by inherent weaknesses. The links between the central government and the regional government authorities are impaired. Governing on an insufficient line of communications, both the president and the government have a very light footprint in the provinces. The cabinet ministers, on the other hand, are disadvantaged by lack of capacity and inexperience. They do not fully appreciate the current state of the population, nor do they exert any considerable effort to this end.  
* Afghanistan is among the least developed and impoverished countries in the world. Cultivation and trafficking of drugs constitute the underlying dynamic of the national economy.  
* Respect for human rights, upholding the rule of law, political party interface-all indispensable elements of democracies- are not fully functioning.  
* Lack of experience and professionalism of the civil servants pave the way for corruption, mismanagement, ethnic discrimination, and cronyism at the provincial level, thus undermining effective governance.

5. ISAF Troop Contributing Nations
Jordan
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Netherlands
New
Zealand
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
152 94
261 9
1,718
115
418
1,090 7
539
Albania
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belgium
Bulgaria
Canada
Croatia
Czech
Republic
Denmark
118
1055 3 44
365
370
2,526
234
154
643
Estonia
Finland
France
FYROM
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
117
104
1,442
131
3,181 60
223 9 7
2,874
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine
United
Kingdom
States
TOTAL: 68 48
730
342 2
626
229
8,296
17,250
45,655
As of Jan 08

6. ISAF Overview LEGEND Total Forces ~46 ,000 RC N RC W RC E RC C RC S
Lead nation
RC C
Lead nation
RC W
Lead nation
LEGEND
RC E
Lead nation
Provincial Capital City
Provincial Reconstruction Team
RC North
RC West
RC South
RC S
RC East
Lead nation
RC Capital
Total Forces
~46
,000

7. SECURITY SECTOR REFORM INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
Rebuilding
Afghanistan
Afghan Compact 2006
Counter
Narcotics
United
Kingdom
Judicial
Reform
Italy
Disarmament
Of Illegally
Armed Groups
(DIAG)
Japan
Train the
Afghan
National
Army
States
Train
Police
Forces
Germany
SECURITY SECTOR REFORM
UNAMA-NGOs
ISAF OEF
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

8. Security Challenges
Nations are not meeting the capability requirements specified in the Combined Joint Statement of Requirements (CJSOR)
Key deficiencies include Rotary Wing Lift, Manoeuvre Forces and Operational Mentor & Liaison Teams (OMLTs)
Operational capabilities of some individual units are limited by national caveats or other national constraints

9. Afghan National Security Forces
Afghan National Army (ANA)
One of the success stories in the rebuilding of Afghanistan’s government institutions
Sustained NATO support required
Operational Mentor & Liaison Teams (OMLT)
Number one way for NATO to support the development of the Afghan National Police (ANP)

10. Afghan National Army
ANA continues to grow in capacity as well as capability
Growth: ANA increased from 25,000 to 37,000 (48% increase)
Experience: 201ST and 203RD Corps have the ability to plan operations and have conducted Afghan led operations
Explosives Ordnance Disposal (EOD): ANA has started basic EOD and counter-IED training
Commandos: (began training 6 months ago)
201ST Kandak progressed to no notice operational employment
203RD Kandak demonstrated operational capability in December 07
ANA Air Corps
Increased flight time from 100 hrs/month to 140 hrs/month
Flew as an integrated serial within the CJTF-82 Aviation TF
Performed flood relief missions (1200+ saves)

11. Afghan National Police
Emerging as a trusted national security institution
Focused District Development: improving ANP performance district-by-district, developing district-level capabilities, strengthening command linkages, enabling the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) to project success
Provincial Training Center
Regional Training Center

12. RC-East Security Operations
Expanded Presence: A 50% growth in security forces in Regional Command-East resulted in a corresponding 39.5% increase in enemy contacts; mostly harassing fires
An increased number of bases and posts along known insurgent support areas and infiltration routes
A greater number of Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) expanding into additional areas
An increase in the number of operations more rapidly separates the enemy from the populace
Border Incidents: Insurgents are focusing more on gains and expansion opportunities in Pakistan
Significant decrease over Nov-Dec
42% below same time period in 2006
Suicide IEDs (SIED): Insurgents focused more on Pakistan resulting in a decrease in SIEDs in RC-E
SIEDs in Pakistan 2006 (5); in 2007 (60)
SIEDs in RC-E Apr-Dec 2006 (52); Apr-Dec 2007 (50)
Key Insurgent Leaders targeted: Strengthened Coalition Forces / Afghan partnerships and reduced enemy’s ability to facilitate weapons, conduct IED attacks, and coordinate support
112 Key Insurgent Leaders removed from the insurgent network in 2007; (82 in 2006)
Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) participated, planned, or led many of these operations
Security: Despite an increase in enemy activity, citizens feel safe to conduct daily activities, move freely, pursue work and education, and participate in civic activities
Increase in traffic: Andar (Hwy 1) Apr-May avg 100 vehicles per month; now 500 vehicles per day
Afghans are attending Shuras, Humanitarian Assistance distribution, medical engagements, responding to calls for workers, using Government Centers; children are attending school
24-month
average
2006
2007
RC-East Border Incidents in NE ; in SE

13. Afghan Development Strategy
Afghan National Development Strategy (ANDS)
Currently exists in interim form (I-ANDS)
Based on Sub-national consultations
Needs to be sequenced and resourced
National Priority Programmes (NPP)
Delivers against I-ANDS targets
Policy Action Group (PAG)
Prioritises needs, link to donors
Endorse Afghan Development Zones (ADZs)
UNAMA - coordination IC effort

14. RC(W) and RC(N) ADZs seeking PAG approval
Afghan Development Zones
RC(W) and RC(N) ADZs seeking PAG approval
Kunduz
Balkh
Faryab
Badakhshan
Farah
Qala-i Now
Herat
Surobi
RC(E) PAG Approved 6 Dec 06
Jalalabad
Parwan
Ghazni / Tri-Cities
Qalat
Tarin Kowt
Lashkar Gah
Kandahar
Endorsed
Await Policy Action Group (PAG) approval
RC(S) PAG Approved 30 Aug 06

15. Road construction camp
The Comprehensive Approach
Kajaki Dam
$300M ,12 month
hydro-power project
Sangin-Gereshk
$3.7m ALP &
community outreach
Route 611
Duri Junc-Sangin Rd
AFG sub-contractors
Highway 1
Duri Junction
Road construction camp

16. Provincial Reconstruction Teams
Primary tool for stability operations
Assisting expansion of Afghan governance
Must promote an Afghan ownership of projects
‘One size fits all’ PRT neither appropriate nor possible

17. ISAF PRT Tasks
Improve the security environment for the Afghan people through dialogue with provincial leaders and confidence building activities and mitigating likely areas of conflict.
Monitor, assess, advise on and support security sector reform activities, particularly Afghan National Army and police training, in close co-ordination with UNAMA, security sector reform lead-nations and bilateral programmes.
Facilitate the development of effective provincial governance, building capacity to plan, prioritise and manage programmes and major events.
Encourage and facilitate the work of provincial development committees, and other committees that may emerge, for example on security, and provincial bodies, such as joint coordination centres.
Advise on the coordination of Afghan security forces/agencies in a province.
Provide a visible presence in assigned areas of operation, monitoring and assessing the military and civil situations within those areas.
Act as the development reconnaissance force for the reconstruction effort, offering a coherent picture of needs to the ISAF chain of command, provincial authorities and those assisting redevelopment.
Assist the international community with the process of reform and strengthening of civil administration.
Help to facilitate information sharing between the Afghan government and civil agencies, on their request.
Support humanitarian assistance and reconstruction activities when requested, within means and capabilities.

18. Counter Narcotics
President Karzai: “Either we destroy poppy, or it will destroy Afghanistan”
Afghanistan supplies 93% of the world’s illicit opium
Majority of poppy cultivation in the south
Narcotics fund insurgency, insurgents help preserve the drug trade

19. Progress in Afghanistan
ACTIVITY
TALIBAN ERA
TODAY (Jan 08)
Road Network
21,000km; many damaged
34,782km; many upgraded / repaired
Schools
Attendance
Teachers
Availability
~ 1000
~ 1 million boys; no girls
~ 20,000
Few had access to schools
~ 9000
~ 6 million total (2.2 million are girls)
~ 160,000: 800% growth
~ 97% of boys; 68% of girls (RC-E)
Access to Health Care
8% of people had access
78% of people have access
Infant Mortality Rate
Highest in the World
25% Reduction: 89,000 lives saved
Banking System
No system: 3 currencies
1 Globally recognized currency
Licit Exports
$80,000,000
$471,000,000; 588% Increase
District Centers (DC)
No Centers of Government
85 DCs; 53 under constr. (RC-E)
Telecommunications
1 mobile phone company
4 companies: 3.5 million subscribers
Gov Comms Network
Non-Existent
64% Districts linked to Central Gov
TV & Radio Stations
Virtually non-existent
6 TV & 104 Radio Stations
Electricity Production
430 Mega-Watts
754 Mega-Watts
Irrigation Canals
60%-70% Destroyed
440km rebuilt; servicing 240,000 acres

20. The Way Ahead for ISAF
Build upon Provincial Reconstruction Team success at local levels
Increase support to Afghan National Army / Security Forces
Increased support to Afghan Counter Narcotics efforts
Support regional stability
Assist Afghan Government implementation of comprehensive, nationwide development program

21. Questions?

22. Backup Slides