Afghan Army Takes The Lead

Afghan Soldiers Enter A Taliban Nest — Without U.S. Troops By Their Side -- Washington Post

In TANGI VALLEY, AFGHANISTAN — When the first Afghan soldiers arrived at the mouth of the Tangi Valley last week, they saw a Taliban flag waving over a towering bluff. They had entered a sliver of their own country that did not belong to them, beginning one of the most daunting missions in the short history of the Afghan army.

They climbed to the rocky peak and plucked the enemy’s flag from the ground. That’s when the first makeshift bomb exploded, a booby trap that blew the men off their feet and threw a plume of dust and smoke and fire into the air.

It was an early confirmation of what Afghan and U.S. troops already knew: The Tangi is not just another insurgent haven. According to many intelligence estimates, it is the most dangerous vein in the country’s eastern hinterlands, home to Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. It is the site of the deadliest attack endured by the U.S. military in Afghanistan and one of the biggest staging grounds for assaults on Kabul, just 60 miles away.

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WNU Editor: Two more must read articles on the effectiveness of the Afghan Army.

Teething pains for the Afghan army -- The Hindu
With Swagger, Afghan Army Takes the Lead -- New York Times

5000 Afghan Troops Quit Every Month

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Leopoldo Bejarano Jr., right, observes an Afghan soldier adjust the aim on a D-30 howitzer on Forward Operating Base Mehtar Lam in Afghanistan’s Laghman province, March 12, 2013. Bejarano is assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division's 5th Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Andrew Claire Baker

Report: 5000 Afghan Troops Quit Their Job Every Month -- Khaama Press

According to the latest figures revealed for every 10 new soldiers recruited to the Afghan National Army (ANA), at least three are lost because they have been sacked, captured or killed in action.

The issue has created concerns regarding the ability of Afghan security forces to protect emerging democracy when coalition forces are leaving the country in less than years time.

Around 5,000 Afghan troops are are quitting every month, according to the latest attrition rates confirmed by British officials.

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My Comment: These are staggering numbers. There is no way that the Afghan army can sustain itself over a period of one or two years if these are the rates that they must experience.

Will The Afghan Army Be Ready When U.S. And NATO Forces Withdraw?

Afghanistan: An Army Prepares -- Al Jazeera

When US troops leave Afghanistan in 2014, will the country's own forces be able to hold the line against the Taliban?

The US military has an expression – no man gets left behind. But with the withdrawal of coalition combat troops from Afghanistan in 2014 drawing closer, the men of the Afghan National Army (ANA) could be forgiven for feeling that they are indeed being abandoned.

In order to be able to leave and not have Afghanistan collapse immediately on their departure, the Americans announced at the end of 2009 that the size of the ANA would be increased to almost 200,000 soldiers.

A huge recruitment and training drive began, with new military training centres being set up around the country to facilitate the explosion in numbers.

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Update: Afghans Urged to Take All Military Tasks Except Aviation -- Bloomberg Businessweek

My Comment: There will still probably be about 6,000 - 9,000 U.S. soldiers in the country after 2014 .... as well as some U.S. air support .... so the Afghan Army will not be entirely alone. But the Afghan Army will need to step up and only time will tell if they have the ability to fight and hold back the Taliban. What's my prediction .... if Afghanistan's political leadership cannot get their act together, the Afghan Army will be under increased pressure as more Afghans become dissatisfied with the central government.

Women Are Starting To Join The Afghan Military

Women Break Barriers In Afghan Military -- CBS

(CBS News) FORT RUCKER, Ala. - The last American combat troops will exit Afghanistan at the end of 2014. They've been training Afghans to take over the fight.

You might be surprised by who is answering the call to defend Afghanistan.

If you think of Afghan women as downtrodden and of Afghans as not willing to fight for their own country, you need to meet Sourya Saleh and Masooma Hussaini.

"We are Afghan," Hussaini said. "That's our duty. We have to defend our country."

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My Comment: It's going to take more than just putting a few women in the Afghan military to make a difference in Afghanistan.

U.S. Spends $14K Per Afghan Troop Per Year. Afghan Troop Salary Is $1,872

Afghan National Army soldiers arrive for a ceremony in Mehtar Lam. Reuters

The U.S. Spends $14K Per Afghan Troop Per Year, But Each Earns $1,872 -- The Atlantic

The Obama administration hopes to wind down the long Afghan war by shifting responsibility for securing the country to Afghanistan's nascent army and national police. One thing's for certain: It won't be cheap.

​The overall U.S. mission in Afghanistan is already shifting from direct combat to training and mentoring the Afghan forces, which are slated to grow to 352,000 by the end of 2012. Boosting the numbers of capable Afghan forces would carry both human and financial benefits for the U.S, reducing the likelihood of American battlefield casualties and allowing the withdrawal of U.S. troops costing a whopping $1 million each per year to station there.

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My Comment: A summary of the costs are the following ....

.... Still, a close look at U.S. military statistics shows that Afghan soldiers and police officers are far more expensive than you'd expect. They are paid an average of just $1,872 a year, but the overall cost of training and fielding a police officer is roughly $30,000 per year, while the cost of each soldier is nearly $46,000 per year. the United States bears virtually all of those costs, adding up to more than $3.5 billion a year.

These numbers are high .... but they are better than the $1 million that it costs to keep a US soldier in Afghanistan.

The Afghan Military Is Not Ready

An Afghan National Army soldier carries his rifle in eastern Afghanistan Kunar province / Reuters

Will the Afghan Army Be Ready? -- Sara Sorcher, The Atlantic

As U.S. troops draw down from Afghanistan, Afghan forces are supposed to take their place, but the training is slow going.

Nearly 10 years of training and billions of dollars spent and only two of the Afghan National Army battalions are currently able to operate 'independently' -- although they still rely on coalition partners for logistical, medical, and maintenance support.

The U.S. commander of NATO's training mission in Afghanistan, Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, defended the ability of the local security forces, in spite of recent high-profile attacks, including a 20-hour assault on the U.S. Embassy and NATO headquarters in Kabul earlier this month.

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More News On Training The Afghan Forces

US commander says 800 more US trainers heading to Afghanistan by March -- Washington Post/AP
Cost of training Afghan forces can be cut: US general -- AFP
Caldwell: Afghan Troops, Police Make ‘Significant’ Progress -- US Department of Defense
Zero U.S.-Trained Afghan Army Battalions Can Operate Alone -- The Atlantic Wire
Not A Single Afghan Battalion Fights Without U.S. Help -- Danger Room

Secret NATO Report: Do Not Trust Our Afghan Allies

These five soldiers were shot and killed by a 'rogue' Afghan policeman at a checkpoint in the Nad e-Ali district of Helmand province. Top, from left: Warrant Officer Class 1 Darren Chant, Sergeant Matthew Telford and Guardsman James Major, 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards: bottom, from left: Corporal Steven Boote and Corporal Nicholas Webster-Smith, Royal Military Police Photo: PA

Commanders Ignored Warnings That British Troops Were At Risk From Attack By Afghan Allies -- The Telegraph

British troops face such danger from their allies in the Afghan army and police force that they should carry a loaded pistol whenever they are working alongside them, a secret Nato report has warned.

The report, ordered after a rogue Afghan policeman shot dead five British servicemen, recommended that British troops should be armed with 9mm pistols at all times - even when sleeping - because of the high risk of being attacked.

It also called for British soldiers to have separate sleeping and living quarters from Afghan troops, and for all British "administrative areas" to be covered by armed sentries, such were the fears of further incidents.

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My Comment: More news and info outlining Nato failures in training the Afghan security forces.

Women Recruits In The Afghan Army

The Afghan army's women officer cadets share a joke between lessons. Photo: Lalage Snow

Force For Change: The Women Of The New Afghan Army -- The Telegraph

For the first time since the dark days of the Taliban, 29 women have been recruited to serve in the Afghan army

It was Haniffa Rezai's mother, a policewoman, who encouraged her to join the Afghan National Army (ANA) instead of going to university, but the seed had been planted many years earlier. 'When the Taliban were in power we lived in Iran and our neighbour was in the Iranian army,' Rezai says. 'His guards would salute him when he came home and I used to copy them. It made me want to learn how to march. One day, I will be the one who is saluted, just like him.'

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My Comment: They still have a long way to go.

What Does It Take To Create An Afghan Special Forces Organization

Making The Afghan Special Forces -- Special Force

CAMP MOREHEAD, WARDAK PROVINCE, Afghanistan — Here on the outskirts of Kabul, a single Special Forces A-team has been charged with a responsibility unprecedented since the Vietnam era: creating an Afghan Special Forces organization from scratch.

The establishment of the Afghan National Army Special Forces, the first members of which graduated from their qualification course May 13, is part of a larger trend toward a more traditionally “indirect” counterinsurgency approach on the part of elite Afghan units trained by U.S. Special Forces. The 7,000-strong Afghan Commando Brigade — the country’s premier infantry force — is expanding beyond its core “direct action” mission set aimed at killing or capturing insurgents and now conducts disaster relief operations and what the military terms “key leader engagements” with tribal and village elders.

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My Comment: Considering the corruption and incompetence of other military/police organizations, this news gives some hope that maybe Afghanistan will find its way one day.

Finding The Right Ethnic Balance In The Afghan Army Is Becoming A Problem

Afghan recruits shortly before graduation from the Kabul Military Training Center. Yochi Dreazen/The Wall Street Journal

Cracks Are Appearing In Plan To Build Up The Afghan Army -- Times Online

Afghan soldiers surprised the roadside bombers as they laid a device south of Garmsir. According to one British officer familiar with the incident, there were five bombers. The Afghan army unit that found them had just lost three of their own to a roadside bomb. So three of the Taleban were killed by the road.

The architects of the military mission in Afghanistan face a finely balanced set of problems as they try to build up Afghan forces to 400,000 by the end of next year from their current 96,000 soldiers and 89,000 police.

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My Comment: To assemble an army of 400,000 .... from scratch .... in only a few years. Who are they kidding?

This Is The Afghan Army That We Are Training (Video)

From The Danger Room:

Top NATO commander General Stanley McChrystal calls training local soldiers and cops “our main effort” in Afghanistan. But whipping recruits into shape is a whole lot harder when they’re stoned out of their minds.

“You walk into a whole squad of ANA [Afghan National Army] smoking hashish. They don’t understand that the use of drugs, it effects the way that they accomplish their mission,” says one disgusted marine. “Soldiers come out without helmets, soldiers come out missing a lot of gear.”

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My Comment: As bad as this video is .... I have actually seen worse. I posted a collection of videos about 6 months ago that revealed how "stoned" and incompetent the Afghan Army was. Sadly .... this is the normal for the Afghan Army .... not the exception.

War Is Boring Has more on this topic .... the link is here.

Afghan Army: Corrupt, Untrained, Underpaid, Illiterate

From Defence of the Realm:

The Sunday Times laments the poor state
of the Afghan security forces, with a long piece headed: "Corrupt, untrained, underpaid, illiterate: the forces waiting to take over." This is by no means the first article to draw attention to the parlous state of the forces, on which the Coalition exit plan entirely depends.

In fact – as you might expect – the problem is very far from new. In 1900, Afghan ruler Abdur Rahman was recalling the state of the army he had inherited from his predecessor, noting that it was "defective in certain respects" ...

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My Comment: Defence of the Realm is one of my favorite blogs .... a must read everyday.But there was something in his title for his post that got me thinking.

Corrupt, untrained, underpaid, illiterate .... while he refers this to the Afghan Army, one can also say the same thing about the Taliban. They are also corrupt (some may disagree with this point .... but accepting bribes has also been there way of doing business), untrained, most are probably not paid, and illiterate .... but they are winning this war.

The question that then needs to be asked is .... what is the difference between a Taliban soldier and an Afghan soldier. They are the same people .... from different tribal affiliations (maybe) .... but they look at Afghanistan as their country. They worship the same God, and they .... like everyone else in Afghanistan .... has suffered greatly in the past 30 years. They have the same education .... or lack of. While they may differ in dialects and language .... this has not stopped them from doing business with each other for centuries.

So .... why are the Taliban a far more effective fighting force even with having limits on supplies and resources. Why is their dedication to win far greater than what their Afghan counterparts on the other side may have. Why in this civil war they are the ones who are winning, and we are the ones who are losing. Questions .... questions .... questions.

My answer ..... maybe it is because of us.

More on this at a later time.

U.S. Cool To Surge In Afghanistan's Own Force

Senior administration officials said that the timetable will not be tied to particular conditions on the ground in Afghanistan. Scott Olson/Getty Images

From The Wall Street Journal:

White House Leaning Against Call to Double Nation's Police and Army, but Surge of Some 30,000 American Troops Is Likely.

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration has soured on a call from its top commander to double the size of the Afghan police and army, reflecting the White House's continued skepticism about the Afghan government even as the U.S. prepares a surge of troops into the country, people familiar with the matter say.

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My Comment: These concerns are completely justified. When the Soviets occupied Afghanistan, they increase the Afghan military to 400,000 men. But when the Soviet military left, the Afghan Army collapsed within one year.

Will history repeat if the Americans become involved .... hmmmm .... considering the White House's reluctance to increase the Afghan Army I would have to say yes.

Where Are The Afghan Security Forces?

Afghan Army recruits

From Time Magazine:

President Obama's plain-speaking Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, on Nov. 12 summed up the Administration's Afghan dilemma in a single question: "How do we signal resolve and at the same time signal to the Afghans and the American people that this is not open-ended?" The fact that there's no good answer explains the Administration's hesitation in committing more troops to the fight. Indeed, the objectives cited by Gates may function at cross-purposes.

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My Comment: During the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the Afghan army and police forces numbered almost 400,000. But when the Soviet army left, desertion and successful Taliban attacks decimated these forces within two years.

I expect the same with present day Afghanistan. To mentor and buildup Afghanistan forces will take a decade or two .... and tens of billions of dollars. Will President Obama and Congress agree to such a commitment .... I doubt it.

Why U.S. Policy On Afghanistan Cannot Rely On The Afghan Army

The U.S. hopes to double the size of the Afghan national army within the next two years. Above, Afghan recruits shortly before graduation from the Kabul Military Training Center. Yochi Dreazen/The Wall Street Journal

Here Is Your Afghan National Army -- The Captain's Journal

General McChrystal’s report to Secretary Gates lays the groundwork for a request for 40,000+ more U.S. troops. The actual need for troops will be higher than that. McChrystal’s report relies heavily on Afghan National Security Forces (Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police), closely following the strategy laid out by CNAS to ramp up the readiness of ANA. But the left side of the isle doesn’t have the sole claim for plans to rely heavily on ANA. Kimberly and Frederick Kagan also recommend a similar reliance on a rapid increase in the size of the ANA to provide the necessary troops for population security.

But recall the problems that we have documented concerning the ANA.

We have watched the ANA engage in drug abuse, smoke hashish before patrols, collude with Taliban fighters to kill U.S. troops, themselves claim that they cannot hold Helmand without Marines and fear being killed if they even go out into the streets, be relatively ineffective against Taliban fighters, sleep on their watch, and claim to be on vacation in the Helmand Province.

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My Comment: This is a depressing report. It is also something that my Canadian contacts have been telling me for the past two years. There are some in the Afghan Army who are loyal and dedicated to a new Afghanistan .... but there are just as many who are not.

Read it all.

Is The Afghan Army Better Than What Has Been Reported?

Afghan National Army soldiers stand for the audience and Afghan National Army officers attending the commemoration of the first birthday of the 205th Afghan National Army Corps at Camp Shir Zai, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan, Sept. 21, 2005. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Leslie Angulo

Afghan Army -- Michael Yon

There is dispute whether the testimony to the British House of Commons regarding the Afghan National Army is correct.

Part of that testimony was published on my site yesterday.

Colonel Bill Hix emailed to me from Afghanistan with an on-the-ground view. It is important to note that Colonel Hix is a veteran of Iraq, with much experience in the tough parts of Afghanistan. I was out with his soldiers in late 2008. Colonel Hix is highly respected among combat soldiers who don't hand out respect easily. His views on Afghanistan are highly-informed, cautious and realistic, but definitely more optimistic than are mine. I greatly respect his highly informed opinion and so it's important to make sure Colonel Hix's counterpoints get wide distribution. Please link to this dispatch. (Note to journalists seeking truth on Afghanistan: Colonel Hix is at KAF and is an important source regarding conditions in southern Afghanistan.)

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