{ "id": "R43196", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R43196", "active": false, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com, University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 426491, "date": "2014-01-02", "retrieved": "2016-04-06T23:11:37.167355", "title": "War in Afghanistan: Campaign Progress, Political Strategy, and Issues for Congress", "summary": "This is a critical time for U.S. efforts in the war in Afghanistan. U.S. military engagement beyond December 2014, when the current NATO mission ends, depends on the achievement of a U.S.-Afghan Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA), specifying the status of U.S. forces. Afghan President Hamid Karzai threw the BSA process into confusion by introducing new terms and conditions after a deal had been reached by negotiators. Even if a BSA is reached, U.S. decisions are still pending regarding the scope, scale, and timeline for any post-2014 U.S. force presence in Afghanistan. President Obama has indicated U.S. readiness, in principle, to maintain a small force focused on counter-terrorism and supporting the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). \nWhile troop levels tend to steal the headlines, more fundamentally at stake is what it would take to ensure the long-term protection of U.S. interests in Afghanistan and the region. Arguably, the United States may have a number of different interests at stake in the region: countering al Qaeda and other violent extremists; preventing nuclear proliferation; preventing nuclear confrontation between nuclear-armed states; standing up for American values, including basic human rights and the protection of women; and preserving the United States\u2019 ability to exercise leadership on the world stage. At issue is the relative priority of these interests, what it would take in practice to ensure that they are protected, and their relative importance compared to other compelling security concerns around the globe.\nU.S. efforts in Afghanistan include an array of activities: prosecuting the fight on the ground, in support of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), to counter the insurgency; supporting Afghanistan\u2019s political process, including the presidential elections scheduled to be held in April 2014; providing assistance to help Afghans craft and grow a viable economy; and facilitating Afghan-led efforts to achieve a high-level political settlement with the Taliban. At issue is whether these are the activities best suited to achieve a lasting outcome that protects U.S. interests, as well as how these activities might most constructively inform each other. \nIn 2013, most Afghan and ISAF commanders suggested that the campaign on the ground was gaining traction, reflected in the successful security transition to Afghan lead responsibility for security and in improvements in the ANSF; in the diminished strength of the insurgency; and in the successful adaptation by coalition forces to new roles and missions. Yet most observers agree that the long-term sustainability of campaign gains\u2014and the protection of U.S. interests\u2014would require major changes in the broader strategic landscape. Critical requirements would include sufficiently responsive Afghan governance; a viable economy that offers Afghans sufficient opportunities; a regional context that supports rather than undermines Afghan stability; and a conclusion to the war broadly acceptable to the Afghan people.\nFor Congress, next steps in the war in Afghanistan, including near-term policy decisions by the U.S. and Afghan governments, raise several basic oversight issues: the costs associated with a continued U.S. force presence in Afghanistan; the challenges of \u201cre-setting\u201d the force and restoring its readiness as it comes home from Afghanistan; accountability for sound strategy that protects U.S. interests; integration of effort across U.S. government agencies in support of broad U.S. political strategy for Afghanistan; and appropriate prioritization of this effort compared to competing national security exigencies.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R43196", "sha1": "07e6d48711c14fba97f7e681be8c0c09e022a9fd", "filename": "files/20140102_R43196_07e6d48711c14fba97f7e681be8c0c09e022a9fd.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R43196", "sha1": "cfcd891a953d49dcd963115ff32c2234e1a2a7e4", "filename": "files/20140102_R43196_cfcd891a953d49dcd963115ff32c2234e1a2a7e4.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc272052/", "id": "R43196_2013Dec17", "date": "2013-12-17", "retrieved": "2014-02-03T19:46:03", "title": "War in Afghanistan: Campaign Progress, Political Strategy, and Issues for Congress", "summary": "This report describes the current strategic context, the state of the campaign, next steps in the campaign, and what it would take to make campaign gains sustainable; and it offers questions that may be of help to Congress in providing oversight of further U.S. efforts in Afghanistan.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20131217_R43196_906e4b4899a93a4aeb309ff22dc72621f37f5f3e.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20131217_R43196_906e4b4899a93a4aeb309ff22dc72621f37f5f3e.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign policy", "name": "Foreign policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Afghanistan", "name": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Afghanistan" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- Afghanistan -- U.S.", "name": "Foreign relations -- Afghanistan -- U.S." }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Politics and government -- Afghanistan", "name": "Politics and government -- Afghanistan" } ] }, { "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department", "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc227916/", "id": "R43196_2013Aug29", "date": "2013-08-29", "retrieved": "2013-11-05T18:07:05", "title": "War in Afghanistan: Campaign Progress, Political Strategy, and Issues for Congress", "summary": "This report describes the current strategic context, the state of the campaign, next steps in the campaign, and what it would take to make campaign gains sustainable; and it offers questions that may be of help to Congress in providing oversight of further U.S. efforts in Afghanistan.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORT", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "PDF", "filename": "files/20130829_R43196_267adafce5ded1d8b681a6f13122927ffb9cbf0a.pdf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/20130829_R43196_267adafce5ded1d8b681a6f13122927ffb9cbf0a.html" } ], "topics": [ { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign policy", "name": "Foreign policy" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Afghanistan", "name": "Foreign relations -- U.S. -- Afghanistan" }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Foreign relations -- Afghanistan -- U.S.", "name": "Foreign relations -- Afghanistan -- U.S." }, { "source": "LIV", "id": "Politics and government -- Afghanistan", "name": "Politics and government -- Afghanistan" } ] } ], "topics": [ "Economic Policy", "Foreign Affairs", "Intelligence and National Security", "National Defense" ] }