Contribution to Operational Command. A new transatlantic accord concerning the future war strategy at the Hindu Kush is in the making. 2008/11/27 Reinforcement The activities of the western war alliance in Afghanistan are about to be considerably extended. The NATO Supreme Commander (US) Gen. Bantz J. Craddock explained that there was a 40% increase in clashes between units of the international Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan and the Afghan military forces with the Taliban in relation to last year. Because of the "harder and tougher" security situation, he called for an ISAF reinforcement of 20,000 soldiers. He also explained that the 26 NATO nations have around 60,000 soldiers deployed in various operations at the moment. Craddock welcomed the fact that the incoming US president, Barack Obama has already announced his intentions to increase US force levels and hopes that other nations will also increase their contributions.[1] The German military (Bundeswehr), with 3,500 soldiers is the third largest contingent participating in the ISAF mission in Afghanistan. Under the new parliamentary mandate, it can raise its troop strength to 4,500. Germany is also providing up to 50% of ISAF's airlift logistical support and German aerial surveillance is furnishing up to 45% of the intelligence results. Wrong Strategy The German military is quite ready to extend its Afghanistan war activities - but only if their conditions would be met, particularly those dealing with the strategic mission leadership, for which Berlin is demanding a reorientation along the lines of a German model. The US strategy - victory through sheer military might and using every kind of weapon - has failed, declared the editor-in-chief of the leading military policy magazine, "Europäische Sicherheit" collaborating with the German Federal College of Security Studies and the Leadership Academy of the Bundeswehr. Numerous civilian victims during flawed aerial attacks and actions carried out with crude violence against a merely suspected Taliban have repelled a large segment of the population. The Western troops are seen more as occupiers than as protectors. Positive Prevailing Mood But with the German strategy - military safeguard and civilian reconstruction - it would be possible, through population contact to win the people and convince them of the purpose of the operations, claims the military magazine's editor-in-chief. In spite of the rising number of attacks on German forces and civilian aide personnel, he can still discern a "positive prevailing mood" in Northern Afghanistan, under German responsibility, due to the numerous cooperation projects with civilian aide organizations. But general approval of ISAF is continually dwindling, against which only the application of the German strategy can help. "There is no alternative to the 'network of security,' but it must be applied throughout Afghanistan."[2] New Expectations Though President-elect Obama spoke out in favor of reinforcing troop strength in Afghanistan and asked incumbent Defense Minister Robert Gates to remain in office, experts in Europe and the USA are expecting that the new US administration will take the demands into account that there be stronger consideration of German-European interests [3] - particularly in the war in Afghanistan. The new "European Council on Foreign Relations" think tank, which is supporting the structuring of the EU member states' international activities to form a cohesive EU foreign policy,[4] believes that Washington is prepared to partially revise its strategy, if the EU acquiesces to its demand for a reinforcement of troops.[5] The US Council on Foreign Relations, that plays an important role in formulating foreign policy strategy, confirmed this assessment and sees a possibility that the incoming US administration will place more weight on new negotiations and "civilian-military" projects.[6] Bought Loyalty Early indications suggest that such a change of course is already in progress. NATO Supreme Commander Craddock insisted that a purely military solution in Afghanistan is unthinkable. Development aid, civilian structures and the creation good governance must be further reinforced.[7] In addition, the US seems also prepared to use a new tactic to avoid that more areas of the country fall into the hands of the Taliban. Since the central government in Kabul has practically no power in many outlying areas, local leaders are to be induced with money to join the ISAF side. In a pilot project in the Wardak Province, south of Kabul, tribal chiefs are receiving US $200 per month to create tribal councils and pass information about the Taliban on to ISAF. A similar strategy was used in Iraq, where clan chiefs were paid to set up militias to fight at the side of US troops against insurgents. But in Afghanistan, US commanders have been against using traditional local power structures and buying the loyalty of tribal chiefs.[8] Critics warn that this would provide new means to the warlords responsible for the decades of civil war. The old structures of violence would again be reinforced. Politically Sensitive In return, the German government is already supporting the extension of the Afghanistan war into Pakistan. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, along with his counterparts in the newly established "Friends of Pakistan Group,"[9] have recently reached agreement on an extensive program of a non-military component to accompany counterinsurgency measures in Pakistan,[10] financed by previously promised millions in Euros [11] as well as large sums of so-called development aid. An agreement was reached, during the German-Pakistani government negotiations a few days ago, to considerably expand German involvement in Pakistan and increase development aid to a total of 80 million Euros - nearly double the amount committed in 2005. Germany also agreed to step up its involvement in the politically sensitive region along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan - in developing the school system and public health care.[12] Popularized Image German government advisors seek to extend "civil-military" activities also in Afghanistan. Since it is practically impossible to militarily cover the entire country, the influential SWP suggests that better use be made of the Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) capacities and strengthen CIMIC by increasing its personnel. In a recent study, SWP proposed various measures to "step up the involvement" of NGO experts in mission preparations. "Efficient cooperation in the theatre of operations" requires early collaboration, the SWP writes.[13] With "impressions of constructing bridges and drilling wells, "the German contribution to the war, would also become more "popularized - because of its civilian image." "This would help to legitimize the Afghanistan military mission within the German population, facilitating the prolongation of the parliamentary mandate." To avoid misunderstandings concerning the character of the "civil-military" measures, SWP underlines: "Being an integral part of military operational planning, CIMIC has little to do with humanitarian or development aid. (...) Activities in the framework of CIMIC are aimed at facilitating the cooperation with the civilian environment, to increase the acceptance among the civilian population and therefore heighten the protection of the troops and contribute to operational planning and leadership. Its military use is clearly in the foreground." Visible - and Accessible It is mainly the civilian aid workers who have to bear the consequences of this forced "civil military" strategy: Attacks on aid organizations in Afghanistan have considerably increased this year. By September, 146 attacks on aid workers have been reported - the highest amount since attacks began being documented in 2002. Violence is used against aid organizations, because they are obviously "the only visible - and accessible - institutions" on a local level, according to Anso, an NGO dealing with the security of aid workers. Anso suggests that aid organizations strengthen their independence, and keep a distance from those at the political and military levels.[14]   | |
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