PDA

View Full Version : Afghan story expects re they most take some ownership of their government



George L. Singleton
01-29-2009, 11:15 AM
Below are excerpts from the Peshawar FRONTIER POST front page lead article which can be found in full here (http://www.thefrontierpost.com/News.aspx?ncat=ts&nid=3593).

US mountain division troops move into Logar, Wardak F.P. Report

KABUL: Soldiers of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division have left their home station at Fort Drum, New York, and are now moving into position for operations in Regional Command-East, Afghanistan in support of operation Enduring Freedom. Task Force Spartan will serve under Combined Joint Task Force-101 as a unit in NATO’s International Security Assistance Force and be responsible for the provinces of Wardak and Logar in RC East. The area has been sparsely occupied most recently by units from the 101st Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, KY. The brigade is the first element of its size to deploy exclusively into these two provinces, increasing the US presence there by thousands. All forward operating bases throughout these provinces will be reinforced to accommodate the influx of troops. Soldiers began to fly out of Fort Drum as early as mid-November. Task Force Spartan, originally slated to deploy to Iraq, was officially re-routed to Afghanistan in early September. The brigade is the first substantial illustration of the new military focus in Afghanistan. The brigade’s mission has been called expeditionary, given how undeveloped their new area of operations is by US military forces. “Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. (George) Casey called us an expeditionary force,” said Col. David B. Haight, Task Force Spartan commander. “The term basically means that we are a very flexible force. We can get a mission in an austere part of the world, and if you give us the right equipment and the right amount of personnel we can quickly come up with a solution, deploy to that area from our home base of Fort Drum, New York, and begin effective operations in a short period of time.” ...

...Although much of the brigade’s last year of training for Iraq can still be applied to combat and counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan, there is obvious diversity between the two. The brigade staff and soldiers quickly adjusted fire and integrated new key training objectives for Afghanistan. “Some may say that a counterinsurgency is a counterinsurgency no matter where you are in the world, but there are obvious differences we had to prepare for,” said Haight. “The infrastructure in Iraq is much more advanced than what we are dealing with here in Afghanistan, as is the overall terrain...

... “We learned how to operate efficiently in this (counterinsurgency) environment and what are the best ways to interact with the people to include the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police. We’ll lend a lot of effort and focus to working with and helping to train the local Afghan security forces this time around.” ...

...“Our first steps are to get forces out into these more populated areas and begin to interact with the people,” said Haight. “Knowing the human terrain is as important as knowing the mountainous terrain surrounding our forward operating bases.” “We cannot accomplish our mission without the support of the people,” said Maj. James Baker, an officer in the brigade. “We establish these relationships so we can understand the locals’ viewpoint, position and better help them in our efforts to work towards the overall security of Afghanistan. We base these relationships on trust, which is vital to our joint efforts over the next year.” ...

...The focus of the brigade for the next year will be to help improve security in Wardak and Logar and help bring the local populace into a position of strengthened governance and infrastructure...

...There are many factors which will lend to victory in Afghanistan, but only one key will open the door to a more secure future. “We have to get the local populace to take some ownership of their government,” said Haight. “Afghans themselves are obviously the key to this victory.’’ END.