TAPI Pipeline

The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline will be a 1,800 kilometer long natural gas pipeline that will export up to 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India for over 30 years. Turkmenistan has the world's fourth-largest proven gas reserves and will provide a key source of fuel for southern Afghanistan, Pakistan and northern India. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) was appointed the transaction advisor for the TAPI gas pipeline in November 2013. Read more in "Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India Establish Landmark TAPI Pipeline Company", Asian Development Bank, November 13, 2014.

TAPI Pipeline and India's Marginalization

The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline promises to bring economic growth and increased prosperity to the four countries participating in this natural gas project. The TAPI pipeline will move natural gas from Turkmenistan to the other three countries. Unfortunately politics, competition, and security are obstacles to be overcome. Current plans are for the much-delayed development project to be completed in 2018. India, once seen as a major benefactor and leader in the pipeline project, is becoming sidelined. Read more in "TAPI and India's Future in Eurasia", The Diplomat, February 27, 2015.

TAPI Pipeline: Construction to Start in 2015

Pakistani and Indian press reports about the results of the March 15th TAPI pipeline meeting suggest a breakthrough has been achieved that would allow construction to begin as soon as 2015. It appears that progress was made on financial terms with Turkmenistan that allows the huge energy project to move forward. The export of gas products from Turkmenistan to the user nations of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India will benefit Afghanistan. One sticky problem is that the pipeline will flow through southern Afghanistan - and the security situation is far from good in that region. Read "A Breakthrough on the TAPI Pipeline?", by Micha'el Tanchum in The Diplomat, March 20, 2015.

Afghan War News Snippets

EU Providing 12 Million Euros. Afghanistan faces a critical humanitarian crisis as a result of the intensifying conflict. The European Union is upping its contribution for humanitarian aid by 12 million euros bringing the total humanitarian aid to 40 million euros for 2015. (European Commission, Dec 22, 2015).

Taliban Leadership Struggles. There seems to be three distinct groups of the Afghan Taliban emerging and the divide is going away soon. Read "Dueling Fatwas, More Dissension as Afghan Taliban Leadership Struggle Intensifies", Gandhara Blog, December 22, 2015.

Sexual Assault in Afghanistan. Danielle Moylan writes "When It Comes to Sexual Assault, Afghanistan Is All Talk and No Action", Foreign Policy, December 21, 2015.

Peace Talks? Looks like Afghanistan, Pakistan and others will make another attempt at peace talks. Reports say that another round will take place in Pakistan on/about January 11th. China and the United States may (will) also participate. (Radio Free Europe, Jan 2, 2016).

Georgian Deployment Program (GDP). The GDP is a multi-year training program with the goal to increase the interoperability between the Georgian Army and Resolute Support Mission (RSM). The training consists of six six-month rotations designed to train six Georgian infantry battalions. Read more in a contract announcement about driver training for the GDP-RMS project. (GovTribe.com, Dec 22, 2015).

Earthquake - Again. A 6.2 earthquake hit Afghanistan in late December 2015 causing about a dozen injuries. (Telegraph, Dec 25, 2015). A second earthquake was experienced in Kabul on January 2nd - measuring 5.3.

Nuristan - A Remote Region. Mujib Mashal writes about a remote and isolated province in northeastern Afghanistan in "Afghan Province Tucked in Mountains Lies Beyond Reach of Aid and Time", The New York Times, December 25, 2015.

Islamic State Radio. The IS militants based in eastern Afghanistan has launched their own radio station that features a 90-minute long program daily show entitled the "Voice of the Caliphate". It is in Pashto and reaches out to a wide audience within the province. Naturally the Afghan government is not pleased. Watch a two-minute long video by Radio Free Europe, December 22, 2015.

Nomads in Pamir Region. The Kyrgyz of the Pamir Mountains live in three different countries in a remote part of the world - Afghanistan, China, and Tajikistan. Learn more in "Modernity of Ancient Nomads in Pamir of Tajikstan", Radio Free Europe, December 21, 2015.

Former TAAC-South Cdr to 10th Mtn. BG Paul Bontrager is heading to Fort Drum, NY to be deputy commanding general for the 10th Mountain Division (Light). (Defense.gov, Dec 15, 2015).

Corruption. The country of Afghanistan is no doubt one of the most corrupt in the world. This culture of corruption is compounded with the billions of dollars that the U.S. and international community has pumped into the Afghan economy through aid and military expenditures. It is a small victory when someone actually gets charged with corruption. Read "U.S. Charges Afghan Businessman With Bribing for Contracts", Radio Free Europe, December 30, 2015.

TAPI and Peace. Barnett Rubin writes about the importance of the TAPI pipeline project and the impact it will have on peace in the region and Afghanistan's economy. While everyone applauds wildly about this seemingly important economic event some wonder how it will be built and secured in a disintegrating security situation. President Ghani's promise of protecting the pipeline's route through Afghanistan with 7,000 security personnel is ambitious but untenable. Read more in "The TAPI Pipeline and Paths to Peace in Afghanistan", The New Yorker, December 30, 2015.

Bad Year for Ghani. Afghanistan is experiencing weakness and disunity in both government and insurgent ranks. Some believe that President Ghani's first year did not go well. Read "The Guardian view on Afghanistan: a bad year for Ashraf Ghani", The Guardian, December 30, 2015.

Landai Season. Fazal Muzhary writes about this late fall / early winter traditional food feast that takes place in rural parts of Afghanistan in Landai Season: a delicacy and a feast in rural Afghanistan, Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), December 30, 2015.

Data Book on Gender. The World Bank has published a handy pocket guide for users interested in gender statistics. This country by country reference could be helpful to those working gender issues in Afghanistan. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/23436

UN Security Council Debate. The Afghan ambassador to the United Nations, H.E. Mahmoud Saikal, addressed the UN Security Council in December about the situation in Afghanistan. You can listen (and watch) his 18-minute long address at the following link on YouTube.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywV6Iv-Yl18

USAID and CVE. Where does the fight against violent extremism fit within the broad spectrum of development? USAID tells you in a recent report dated September 28th, 2015.

New TAAC-North Cdr. The Train, Advise, Assist Command - North based at Camp Marmal near Mazer-e Sharif in northern Afghanistan has a new commander. A quick look at his bio indicates that this is his first deployment to Afghanistan. Hmmmm. Perhaps it was just an oversight and he has completed five six-month tours to the Graveyard of Empires? Or are the Germans falling into the American practice of selecting officers to command in Afghanistan for their career development rather than selecting officers for their vast knowledge and experience of Afghanistan's politics, culture, tribes, ethnic groups, language, history, and many years of conflict.

Turkish Labs & Afghan Opium. The director of Russia's Federal Narcotics Control Service has said that Turkish laboratories are processing Afghan opium for deliveries to Europe. According to Russia's Sputnik news (real dependable source there) the drug cargo sometimes travels along northern Afghanistan into Iran and then on to Turkey. Once processed it finds its way into Europe through the Balkans. (Khaama Press, Dec 22, 2015).

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Development News

TAPI Pipeline. A consortium leader has been chosen for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline. Turkmenga has been picked to help build and establish this very important development project. TAPI is designed to carry 33 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas annually over a 30-year period to buyers in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. The pipeline, once completed, will transport natural gas through a very volatile part of the world to include the dangerous south of Afghanistan and the Quetta region of Pakistan. The estimated time of completion is sometime in 2018 - although that may be somewhat optimistic given the lack of progress in establishing security and stability in Afghanistan. Read more in a news article by EurasiaNet.org, August 6, 2015.

Hydro Plant for Afghanistan. Afghanistan will soon sign a preliminary deal with a firm from China to build a 240 megawatt hydropower plant. Read more in a news report by Economic Times, August 6, 2015.

Challenge of Economic Sustainability in Afghanistan. Elly Rostoum reports on the problems of Afghan reconstruction in Rebuilding Afghanistan: The Way Forward, Foreign Policy Association, August 6, 2015.

TAPI Natural Gas Pipeline Not in Afghanistan's Future Soon

A recent article states that the proposed Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India natural gas pipeline is not going to be built soon. This endeavor would entail a pipeline built and carrying natural gas from Turkmenistan, across Afghanistan and Pakistan, and into India for processing and shipment to customers. For Afghanistan, the pipeline would mean increased revenue for its national budget. However, the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan has put this very important project on hold. Read more in "Collateral Damage From Afghan Turmoil - - the TAPI Pipeline", Huffington Post, March 21, 2012.

Regional News and Issues

"Why Afghanistan Needs Pakistan". James Creighton, a former U.S. brigade commander (with two Afghan deployments) and currently the chief operating officer of the EastWest Institute, tells us why it is a good thing the Afghan president is reaching out to Pakistan. Read his June 22nd article in The Diplomat. Another "Afghan expert", Michael Kugelman - senior program associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson Center, sheds light in a 13-minute video on the 'false spring' between Pakistan and Afghanistan (The Diplomat, July 1, 2015). In addition, read "Ashraf Ghani's Pakistan Outreach: Fighting against the odds", United States Institute of Peace, June 29, 2015. A former U.S. envoy (Ryan Crocker) says that Pakistan needs to start cracking down on the Afghan Taliban (the "good Taliban) and to start a new cooperative relationship with Afghanistan. (Gandhara Blog, Jul 4, 2015).

Balochistan. Pakistan is not without its own insurgent problems - read about the Baloch insurgency south of Afghanistan's border (The Diplomat, Jun 24, 2015).

Christine Fair and Playing Make-Believe with Pakistani Military. Fair, a critic of the U.S. support of Pakistan, recounts her experiences with the Pakistani Army. (Defense One, Jul 2, 2015).

Charting Pakistan's Internal Security Policy. The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has published a special report by Raza Rumi dated May 2015 worth reviewing.

Iran and the Taliban. There have been rumblings in the media that Iran has stepped up its ties with the Taliban. According to The Wall Street Journal the Shiite nation has quietly boosted ties with the Sunni militant group and is now recruiting and training its fighters. See a report by Margherita Stancati entitled "Iran Backs Taliban With Cash and Arms".

Role of China and India in Afghan Stability. The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) offers up research on the role to two major nations in Afghan regional stability. See a 24 June 2015 report. China is attempting to set up a mining operation in Logar province at the Mes Aynak mine but a 5,000-year-old Afghan historic site is there as well - holding up the progress (Newsweek, Jul 1, 2015). Karl Eikenberry (former cdr and ambassador in Afg) writes on the importance of China and the future of Afghanistan (Asia Foundation, Jul 8, 2015). Tini Tran also weighs in on the China factor (Asia Foundation, Jul 8, 2015).

TAPI Pipeline. The Silk Road Reporters newsletter provides an update on the TAPI pipeline that will transit central and south Asia.

Daily News Snippets on Afghanistan

A veteran, Kyle Dykstra, speaks out about those commentators, observers, and critics who say the war in Afghanistan is lost. He argues it is too soon to determine if the war was won or lost; more time is needed to see the end result. Read more in "Don't Tell Me We Lost the War in Afghanistan", Task and Purpose, November 24, 2014.

A former rule of law advisor in Afghanistan, Jade Wu, has penned an article that says the Afghan judicial system is a glimmer of hope in the midst of a lot of bad news coming out of Afghanistan. I don't think she is looking at the same judicial system I have looked at the past four years I have been in Afghanistan. Read more in "In Afghanistan, What Counts?", Small Wars Journal, November 26, 2014.

Some news reports say that the British embassy in Kabul was bombed causing casualties. Others are reporting that a British convoy was attacked. See The Guardian for more info. See also Voice of America.

Is it possible to find good governance in Afghanistan? If you look hard enough it is there . . . occasionally. But the bottom line is the Afghans have yet to form a cabinet. Read more in The New York Times here.

The Guardian asks what will happen when the ISAF combat troops depart and the international funding levels go down.

A German newspaper writes about the expansion of the Resolute Support mission for the United States from just training to support of the Afghan National Security Forces.

The European Council on Foreign Relations posted an article entitled "China Moves Into Afghanistan".

The Institute of War & Peace Reporting has a posting entitled "Afghans See Corruption as Enduring Legacy".

The editor of the TomDispatch.com, Tom Engelhardt, writes a discouraging piece of how little we have accomplished in the past 13 years in Afghanistan and Iraq. If you haven't gotten your daily dose of "woe is us" and "did we ever screw up" then I suggest "Russians Invade Afghanistan (Again!)", The Huffington Post Blog, November 25, 2014.

Camp Bastion was attacked by the Taliban causing the deaths of 6 ANA soldiers. Read more in Military Times. The Brits just recently departed Camp Bastion.

According to the Afghanistan Analysts Network only ten "foreigners" are being detained at the U.S. run Bagram detention center. View report here.

Rula Ghani has been in the news ever since her husband was elected President. Read more in "Afghanistan's First Lady Seeks to Blaze New Trail", Gandhara Blog, November 29, 2014.

End of the fighting season? Not so much; at least somebody forgot to tell the Taliban that they should be heading over the mountain passes into Pakistan to rest up and refit in their sanctuaries (courtesy of the Pakistan intelligence service). Read more in "In Afghanistan, War Now Knows No Season", The New York Times,  November 28, 2014.

The TAPI pipeline may finally be getting some traction. Read "TAPI Pipeline Finally sees Some Momentum", The Diplomat,  November 27, 2014.

Afghan War News Snippets

Flying the Flag. Troops overseas are counseled about flying the U.S. flag in combat zones. Typically, the directives state that the flag should only be flown alongside partner nations (Iraq, Afghanistan, NATO countries, etc.). However, sometimes units operating at small fire bases or on patrols have trouble containing their patriotism. During a recent battle in Helmand province a Special Forces detachment took time out to briefly fly the American flag on top of a building. The SF team had suffered one death and two wounded during an intense firefight engagement with the Taliban. Read more on this topic in "This patriotic photo of Green Berets in Afghanistan is circulating after this week's deadly attack", by Dan Lamothe, The Washington Post, January 8, 2016.

Canadian Hostage Released by Taliban? A Canadian has been freed from captivity in Afghanistan after being taken hostage by the Taliban five years ago. Read more in "Canadian freed five years after Taliban kidnapping", Yahoo! News, January 11, 2016.

SACEUR Visit to Kabul. The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) recently visited Resolute Support headquarters in Kabul and met with senior RS officers. See "SACEUR visits HQ RS", January 11, 2016.

Russia and TAPI. The gas pipeline that will (hopefully) run from Turkmenistan to India (crossing Afghanistan) is proceeding in its construction. The completion of TAPI is certainly not in Russia's interests and it is proposing several alternatives. Read "Russia and the TAPI Pipeline", The Jamestown Foundation, December 18, 2015.

Russia Supplying Wpns to Afg? More and more news reports say that Russia will possibly start providing weapons to Afghanistan. Russia is concerned about the increasing instability of Afghanistan and the possibility that jihadist groups will turn their eyes northward from Afghanistan towards the former Soviet republics of Central Asia. Read more in "Russia to Supply Small Arms to Afghanistan", Associated Press, January 13, 2016.

MoH Recipient Interview. Captain (Ret) Flo Groberg received the Medal of Honor for his actions in saving fellow servicemen during an attack in February 2012. Read an interview by Mike Kelvington posted on The Havoc Journal, January 15, 2016.

Doctors Absent from Rural Areas. Medical centres tend to be concentrated in urban areas, leaving villagers little access to care. Read more in "More Doctors Needed in Afghan Districts", Institute for War & Peace Reporting (IWPR), January 2016.

New Book - "The Lovers". Rod Nordland, an author and correspondent for The New York Times, has wrote a book about a young Afghan couple who risked everything for love. Read more about the book at Harper Collins Publishers.

RS HQs Video. This 1-minute long video posted by Resolute Support HQs provides a brief explanation of the "Train, Advise, and Assist" mission of NATO in Afghanistan.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vbt1R4DfASs

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Afghan War News Snippets (Mar, 19, 2015)

U.S. Defense Budget. The military brass seemed somewhat pleased with the proceedings thus far in the House. Read more in "Military brass endorse boost in war funding", The Hill Blog, March 17, 2015.

UN e-Guide. The United Nations Departments of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and Department of Field Support (DFS) has published (January 2015) an e-Guide. It is a resource for new staff joining DPKO. The e-Guide was developed in recognition of the steep learning curve new personnel experience. It provides basic information on peacekeeping and links to online UN courses on peacekeeping. The document is posted on the PKSOI.org website.

Paper - "Political Parties in Afghanistan." The United States Institute of Pace (USIP) has published a report entitled Political Parties in Afghanistan (Mar 11, 2015). This report assesses their history, role and activities over the last decade and how their future might unfold under and contribute to the country's new unity government (NUG).
www.usip.org/publications/2015/03/11/political-parties-in-afghanistan

Future Issues of UK's Combat Vets. Air Vice Marshal David Murray, the Chief Executive of forces charity SSAFA, has penned a piece entitled "The Full Impact of Afghanistan Is Yet to Be Seen", The Huffington Post Blog (UK), March 13, 2015.

Drones and Bad News. Andrew Cockburn recounts the story of a drone attack in support of a Special Forces detachment in Afghanistan that turns out bad. It is the story of how twenty-three innocent Afghan civilians were killed by mistake; but also sheds light on how drone operations are conducted. Read "Drones and the rise of the high-tech assassins", Boing Boing, March 11, 2015.

Drone Payloads. The drones are here to stay. One big development in drone technology is the ability to vary the payloads - whether it is sensor equipment or ordnance. Read more in "Are High-Tech Sensors the Answer to the Pentagon's Drone Demand?", Defense One, March 2015.

Drugs Flying Out of Afghan Airports. The United Nations reports a sharp spike in drugs being smuggled out of Afghanistan on commercial airline flights by passengers. (Reuters, March 17, 2015).

Talks with the Taliban? Thomas Ruttig of the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) writes a dispatch on the buzz and rumors of peace negotiations. (AAN, Mar 17, 2015).

Truck Bomb in Helmand. A Taliban attack targeting senior provincial officials in Helmand province killed at least seven civilians and wounded around 40. It exploded near the compound that houses the governor, the head of the provincial council, and the deputy provincial police chief. (Gandhara Blog, Mar 18, 2015). See also a news report by Military Times (Mar 18, 2015).

PowerPoint Rangers. There are many good uses for PowerPoint but sometimes it can become a problem. As in when a 45 page CONOP is needed for a routine troop movement from point A to point B. Or when a PowerPoint presentation replaces a concept paper. Read more in "Why the Pentagon Needs a War on PowerPoint", Cicero Magazine, March 18, 2015.

ACCI Training Program for Women. The Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce & Industries (ACCI) reports that 24 business women graduated from a unique ten-week business course that took place in Kabul in partnership with other organizations. (ACCI, Mar 18, 2015).

Dostum Sidelined? According to a report in The New York Times (Mar 18, 2015) First Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum is being benched on the sidelines by President Ghani and the National Unity Government (NUG).

Political Leadership in Afghanistan Needed. A recent commentary by Jack Detsch in The Diplomat (Mar 18, 2015) says that the Coalition is making good strides in the training of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) but that the weak link now appears to be the inability of the government to take charge. Although President Ghani is a robust politician he still (after six months) does not have a fully-formed cabinet in place. In another news report, Tolo News (Mar 17, 2015) says that the remaining nominees for the cabinet may be introduced before, during, or just after the meeting with U.S. officials in the states and President Ghani.

TAPI Pipeline Meeting. There will be another summit meeting on the TAPI gas pipeline project in Kabul this week. Read more in a news report (Khaama Press, Mar 18, 2015).

2015 U.S. Army Posture Statement. The posture statement " . . . is the written expression of the Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Staff of the Army to Congress for the annual posture hearings. The Army Posture Statement informs Congress on the state of the Army and outlines the Army's accomplishments, initiatives, and priorities for Congress to consider when reviewing the President's budget for the upcoming fiscal year".  Read a news report in Stand-To@, March 18, 2015.

Development and Economic News

TAPI: A Milestone in Country's Economic Development. The start of the construction of the Afghanistan section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline in Herat province holds great promise for the country. (Tolo News, Feb 22, 2018).

Water Security. One of the constant irritants in the relationship between Iran and Afghanistan centers along the water that makes its way into Iran from Afghanistan. Read more in "Can Iran and Afghanistan cooperate to bring an oasis back from the dead?", Science Magazine, February 21, 2018.

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Afghan War News Snippets

Pakistan Harboring Taliban Leaders? It would seem this is true based on recent statements by Sartaj Aziz, Pakistan's advisor for foreign affairs. In an unusually candid admission he said that Islamabad has considerable influence over the Taliban because its leaders live in the country. Read more in "Senior Official Admits Pakistan Housing Afghan Taliban Leaders", Gandhara Blog, March 2, 2016.

Pakistan and Durand Line. Former President Karzai recently said that Pakistani leadership wanted recognition of the imposed international border called the Durand Line in exchange for better relations with Afghanistan. Read a news report by Khaama Press, March 1, 2016.

Russia Seeking Role in Afghanistan. "More than two decades after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, Moscow is once again seeking to play a major role in the country by boosting military and economic cooperation with Kabul." Read more in "Russia's new role in Afghanistan", Deutsche Welle, March 2, 2016.

Peace Talks? Move Along . . . Nothing to See Here. It appears that all the talk about talking about an end to the conflict is just that . . . just a lot of talk. Read more in "Afghan Taliban refuse peace talks with government", Associated Press, March 5, 2016. See also "Afghan Peace Talks Face Uncertainty", Voice of America, March 4, 2016. And one more "Paying High Price for Peace: The Afghan High Peace Council Quagmire", Eurasia Review, March 5, 2016.

Curbing the Afghan Refugee Influx. The northern European nations started out welcoming refugees of all sorts (Syrian, Afghan, African, etc.) but they were soon overwhelmed - and now the tune has changed. Read more in "Rolling Up the Welcome Mat" Berlin Moves to Curb Afghan Refugees Influx", Spiegel Online International, March 2, 2016.

Young Boys as Refugees. There is a rise in the number of young Afghan boys who are now in Europe. Read more in "Afghan Boys: the New Face of Europe's Migrant Crisis", Associated Press, March 3, 2016.

UK Says Afghanistan "Safe". A United Kingdom court has ruled that Afghanistan is now safe enough to resume deportations of Afghan.

State Dept Fixes Blunder On SIV Visa. Some Afghan interpreters received a reprieve when the Department of State fixed a mistake in the government's management of a special visa program for Afghan interpreters. Some former interpreters had found out their applications had been denied through a faulty interpretation (or was it intentional?) by the State Department of a recent Congressional law. Read more in "State Department Fixes Unfair Visa Change", The New York Times, March 1, 2016.

Movie Review - "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot". Tina Feys new movie about a TV reporter on her first international assignment is getting mostly positive reviews. Read "Q. and A. With Tina Fey: Live Form Kabul, It's a Feminist Comedy", The New York Times, March 4, 2016.

Agricultural Research. Ongoing research on wheat and other crops in research farms across Afghanistan is contributing to better harvests and improved welfare among farmers. Read more in "Agricultural Research Gives Farmers a New Lease on Life", The World Bank, March 2, 2016.

Gender Stuff. The United Nations has released its 2015 report entitled The World's Women 2015: Trends and Statistics.

More on TAPI. "Afghanistan is preparing to start work on the key Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) Gas Pipeline project." The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum will be implementing the project. Of course, 735 kilometers of the pipeline will pass through Afghanistan . . . so what is the security plan? There is none other than some schemes and dreams on the part of the MoI and MoD. Read more in "Afghanistan Prepares to Start Work on TAPI", Tolo News, March 2, 2016.

India-Iran-Afghanistan Trilateral Transit Corridor. Afghanistan is attempting to revitalize its economy with a number of regional initiatives to revitalize trade and commerce. Of course, a huge factor is the establishment of security and stability in Afghanistan. Read more in "India-Iran-Afghanistan transit corridor talks in progress", Economic Times (India),  March 2, 2016.

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Afghan Security News

U.S. Embassy Travel Warning. On Thursday, November 19th, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul issued an "Emergency Message for U.S. Citizens" stating that it received reports militants planned to target and kidnap a group of U.S. persons who dressed in Afghan attire and frequently traveled to areas of Azrah district in Logar province. The district of Azrah is mostly under the control of the Taliban. Even when there was a U.S. brigade at FOB Shank in Logar province the U.S. very rarely (maybe twice a year) ventured into Azrah - and that was only to helicopter a company plus into the district center for 4 to 48 hours. While the Afghan government says that Azrah district is under the control of the ANDSF . . . it isn't.

Yamgan District Falls . . . Again. For the second time in six months the Yamgan district of Badakhshan province has fallen to the Taliban. The insurgents took advantage of a period of bad weather which prevented government reinforcements from reaching the district. (Khaama Press, Nov 19, 2015).

Kunduz Fell b/c Politics. A recent report by a group studying the fall of Kunduz City to the Taliban in late September 2015 concluded that the in-fighting between the President and CEO caused many of the problems of insecurity. Read "Negligence of Presidency, Executive Office led to fall of Kunduz", ATN News, November 19, 2015.

Suicide Attack in Helmand. A suicide car bomb targeting a convoy of foreign forces just outside the city of Lashkar Gar in Helmand province killed one Afghan civilian and wounded 12 others. The three-vehicle convoy was traveling from Marjah to Lashkar Gah - one of the vehicles caught fire causing some casualties. See "Suicide attack on foreign convoy in Afghanistan kills one: police", Reuters, November 15, 2015.

30 Hazara Passengers Abducted. It appears that more kidnappings are underway in Zabul. Additional people were kidnapped on Saturday by Taliban.(Gandhara Blog, Nov 21, 2015).

Women Lashed to Death. Just weeks after a young woman was stoned to death in Ghor province another woman has now died following a public lashing in Ghor province.

Border Police Killed. At least 13 Afghan Border Police were killed in Khanisheen district of Helmand province after the Taliban overran a checkpost on Saturday.

Losing Confidence . . . "More Afghans than at any time since 2004 feel their country is moving in the wrong direction . . . " Read more in "Afghans losing confidence in new government", Deutsche Welle, November 17, 2015.

Mi-25 Gunships to AAF via India. The Afghan Air Force (AAF) will soon receive four Mi-25 attack helicopters from India. The rapid fielding of these advanced weapons systems area a good example of how quickly aircraft can be fielded when you strip away the bureaucracy. The U.S. Air Force should take note - it has taken years for the A-29 to be fielded to the AAF - and they are not in country yet! Read more in "Indian-supplied Mi-25 gunships to join Afghan Air Force in 2 months", Khaama Press, November 20, 2015.

Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. Tashkent is keen to take part in regional security cooperation but may not be amiable to a formal defence pact. The awareness that the Afghan security forces are slowly losing ground in northern Afghanistan has prompted Uzbekistan to be more cooperative with other neighboring nations in security matters. Read more in "Uzbekistan's Evolving Response to Afghan, Islamic State Risks", Institute for War & Peace Reporting,  November 20, 2015.

Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Despite the turmoil currently roiling Afghanistan the nation of Turkmenistan sees "Afghanistan as a potential land of opportunity, as a trading partner, a market for electricity exports, and a transit nation . . . " for the TAPI pipeline. Read more in "Turkmenistan and Afghanistan Seek Stronger Ties amidst Uncertainty", Silk Road Reporters, November 18, 2015. See also "Turkmenistan: We Don't Need Any Help with Afghan Border", The Bug Pit 0 Eurasianet.org, November 21, 2015.

Kazakhstan and Afghanistan. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has met with the Kazakh president to discuss economic and security ties during his first official visit to Kazakhstan. (Gandhara Blog, Nov 21, 2015).

Afghanistan's Female Commander. "Over 35 years of conflict, fighters loyal to the Afghan warlord known as 'Kaftar', or 'The Dove', have defeated Soviet, Taliban, and government troops.". What is remarkable about this story is 'The Dove' is a woman. Watch a 4-min video about her in "Afghanistan's Female Warlord", Radio Free Europe, November 20, 2015.

Drone Strike Hits Taliban. Afghan officials stated that a drone strike hit a group of Taliban in Khohyani district, Afghanistan along the Pakistan border on Sunday, November 15th. Three Afghans and nine Pakistanis were killed. (The Washington Post, Nov 15, 2015).

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Commentary

"War of Ideas". Retired General Eric T. Olson explains the importance of the war of ideas when confronting the Taliban and the Islamic State. He believes the 'human terrain' is an important part of the conflict in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Read "Wars of Ideas" From the Taliban to the Islamic State", War on the Rocks, January 6, 2016.

2015 Success & Failures. Aziz Amin Ahmadzai says that "2015 saw Afghanistan face several challenges, but the National Unit Government (NUG) saw modest success as well." Failures include the Taliban's fragmentation, fall of Kunduz, NUG's ineffectiveness, rise of Islamic State, and migration of Afghan's young people to Europe. Successes are the regional approach to peace, security, and stability, India's support of the Salma Dam, and forward movement of the TAPI pipeline. Read "Afghanistan's Successes and Failures in 2015", The Diplomat, January 4, 2016.

C-SPAN2 Panel Discussion on Afghanistan. On January 4, 2016 a panel discussion took place, hosted by the Brookings Institution, on the Future of Afghanistan. The panelists (Vanda Felbab-Brown, Che Bolden, Jason Cone, Ann Vaughan, and Michael O'Hanlon) talked about the status of the war in Afghanistan and the efforts to stabilize the country. This 1 1/2 hour long video can be watched at the following link.
www.c-span.org/video/?402677-1/discussion-stability-security-afghanistan

Reasons for a Resurgent Taliban? Dawood Azami of the BBC World Service tells us why the Taliban are resurgent in Afghanistan. He cites three factors. First is the withdrawal of the bulk of the international forces from Afghanistan to include a significant reduction in advisors and air support. Second is the Pakistan military operation in 2014 that dislodged many Uzbek, Arab, and Pakistani militants from Pakistan area sanctuaries into Afghanistan. The third reason is the lack of capability of the Afghan security forces in air support, intelligence, and command and control. Naturally there are other factors as well. (BBC, Jan 5, 2016).

RoL & Afghanistan. Greg Klepois served as Senior Advisor to the Afghan Deputy Minister of Interior. He has penned a paper about the importance of understanding local legal structures and traditions before attempting to re-establish the Rule of Law and Police Reform. Posted on Small Wars Journal, December 31, 2015.

China & Afghanistan. China is participating more and more in activities relating to Afghanistan to include economic development and the pursuit of peace talks. Read China and Afghanistan After the NATO Withdrawal, Jamestown Foundation, Richard Weitz, November 2015.

"Red Teaming" - But Just Tell Me Good News! One of the unique endeavors of the Afghan War was an attempt by the U.S. military to look at different aspects of the conflict. The intent was to provide an alternative perspective to courses of action developed as a result of the Military Decision Making Process (MDMP) and other staff processes used by many U.S. military staffs. The establishment of "Red Teams" (and there was an 18-week long course run by the Army to train up individuals in this job) at major headquarters went a long way to analyze operations (and their effects) from an different point of view. However, the 'bad news' was not always well-received. Read more in "Red Team: A tale of how a general didn't listen to internal criticism in Afghanistan", Best Defense - Foreign Policy, January 7, 2016.

Bloody Transition. The results of the past year of transition looks pretty grim with both Afghanistan's political condition and its security having sharply deteriorated. Read an analysis entitled "A bloody year of transition", The Economist, January 9, 2016.

Central Asia - Future Outlook. Fatemeh Safavi writes about the security prospects in the future for West and Central Asia in a report posted by Euroasia Review, January 5, 2016.

IR Theory and Gray Zone. USSOCOM has rolled out a concept called the "Gray Zone" in an attempt to inform government leaders and senior ranking military officers on the current and future nature of conflict in the space between peace and war. Many critics and observers are taking stock of this new term and providing their comments. The latest is from Stephen Okin in his blog post entitled "IR Theory and the Gray Zone", January 2, 2016.

Asia Expert Speaks on Afg. Andrew Wilder, vice president of Asia programs at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), speaks with National Public Radio's Scott Simon about why the war in Afghanistan intensified in 2015. He does mention state corruption under Karzai as one of the failures of Afghan leadership. Read "Asia Expert: Taliban's Resergence Threatens Afghanistan's Stability", NPR, January 2, 2016.

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Development and Economic News about Afghanistan

Fiber-Optic Line. The Afghan Ministry of Communication and IT (MCIT) says that a fiber optic cable line streaming an Internet connection from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan is expected to run alongside the TAPI pipeline. (Tolo News, Mar 5, 2018).

India, Development, and Afghanistan. India has played a responsible role in Afghan economic development according to Alice Wells - the Acting Assistant Secretary of State of South and Central Asian Affairs. (The New Indian Express, Mar 10, 2018).

JHOC Taught by USAID. The United State Agency for International Development held a two-day course for U.S. military members at Bagram AF in January. The Joint Humanitarian Operations Course (JHOC) helps prepare military leaders and planners to work collaboratively with civilian agencies during international disaster relief and humanitarian assistance operations. Read "On Standby: Preparing the U.S. military in Afghanistan for humanitarian operations", Resolute Support, March 2018.

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Economic, Development, and NGO News

NGO Meeting in Kabul.  A meeting was held presided by the Afghan government with representatives from Non-Governmental Organizations that work in Afghanistan. The conference was held to evaluate NGOs work in Afghanistan in terms of helping with economic development and poverty alleviation. President Ghani said that NGOs have not always implemented projects in an effective manner. He is stressing more interaction and cooperation with the Afghan government. Read more in "Ghani Says NGOs Will Have to Report to Govt", Tolo News, March 12, 2018. See also "Abdullah Wraps up Two-Day NGO Conference in Kabul", Tolo News, March 13, 2018.

Nimruz Water Project. The residentes of Nimruz have high hopes about the dramatic differences a major dam project will have on life in the semi-arid province. Safiullah Amiri writes "Hopes Overflow for Afghan Water Project", Institute for War and Peace Reporting, March 18, 2018.

Pipeline Hopes. The TAPI project was first proposed in 1995 in an attempt to get Central Asian energy to markets in South Asia. However, once the Taliban took power the venture was dropped. Since 2001, with the demise of the Taliban regime, efforts have been made to revive the project. Hopefully the TAPI project will bring increased prosperity to Afghanistan, improve Afghan's confidence in its government, and play a part in reducing insecurity. "A Pipeline for Landlocked Afghanistan: Can It Help Deliver Peace?", The Asia Foundation, March 14, 2018.

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Afghan Daily News Snippets

Daniel W. Drezner, a professor of international politics at Tufts University, has penned a piece entitled "Should the Central Intelligence Agency be less centralized?", The Washington Post, November 20, 2014.

Kenneth Katzman, a specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs, has scripted Afghanistan: Politics, Elections, and Government Performance in a Congressional Research Service (CRS) pub dated November 4, 2014. (RS21922).
http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/234362.pdf

Special Operators will get new wheels! The "Sneaky Petes" need the ability to penetrate remote, hard-to-reach locations in a stealthy manner. A new research grant hopes to lead to the development of a prototype motor bike that will do that. Read "Company Developing Hybrid Energy Motorbike for Special Operators", National Defense Magazine, December 2014.

Leadership, Haircuts, and PT. A commentator worries about "A Failure of Leadership" within the Army. (Combat Cav Scout - From the Op, November 2014).

Jed Ober opines about the new "National Unity Government" that has taken charge in Afghanistan. Read "Stopgap Democracy: Afghanistan's Shaky Government", Foreign Affairs, November 20, 2014.

Malaysia has been one of the many in the Coalition to fight the Taliban and reconstruct Afghanistan. It looks like the country will continue its support. Read "Malaysia Continues to Provide Opportunities for Development in Afghanistan", National News Agency of Malaysia, November 21, 2014.

Pennsylvania's senior U.S. senator, Bob Casey, is attuned to the problems facing Afghan women. He believes that it is important to strengthen women's rights and that includes more participation in the Afghan government and its security forces. Read "Casey: Women in Afghanistan are key to success of their country", Lancaster Online, November 20, 2014.

The U.S. government is a strong back of the TAPI international pipeline project and hopes it will succeed - as it will benefit Afghanistan as well as Central Asia. (Silk Road Reporters, November 20, 2014).

The NATO E-3A mission in Afghanistan is now complete. The last of the crew members have left Mazar-e-Sharif (MeS), Afghanistan. The airplanes were deployed as part of Operation Afghan Assist. (DVIDS, November 19, 2014).

The Afghan-American Chamber of Commerce (AACC) will hold its 10th Annual U.S. - Afghanistan Business Matchmaking Conference on December 9, 10, and 11, 2014 in Washington, D.C. Read more here (PR Newswire, November 20, 2014).

A women reporter working in Afghanistan has many challenges. One intrepid female reporter uses a disguise (young boy) to get around safely. (New York Post, November 20, 2014).

A commentator on drone warfare, Conor Friedersdorf, thinks that news organizations should stop reporting that "militants" were killed when they can confirm no such thing. Read "Drone Strikes Never Kill 'Humans'", The Atlantic, November 20, 2014.

The use of blue force trackers (BFTs) are an important addition to the ability of the U.S. military to keep tabs on the location of friendly units, reduce friendly fire incidents, and to increase situational awareness of the battlefield. However, as the BFTs become more able a new set of problems are prone to develop. Read "Blue Force Tracker Becomes Self-Aware, Has Existential Crisis", DuffleBlog, November 20, 2014.

India is wary about the future of Afghanistan. It would like to see Pakistan stop its support of the Taliban, would look forward to an Afghan economy that would benefit India, and worries about the increasing drug trade in Afghanistan. Michael Kugelman, a senior associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars has penned a piece entitled "What Indians Really Think About the Foreign Troop Withdrawal from Afghanistan", The South Asia Channel - Foreign Policy, November 20, 2014.

The Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction worries about Afghan corruption. Read more in "IG: Corruption in Afghanistan Getting Significantly Worse", National Journal, November 18, 2014. See also "IG: U.S. renewal money in Afghanistan wasted", USA Today, November 19, 2014.

A visionary and motivational speaker, Simon Sinek, speaks to a United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) about motivation, leadership, and addiction. (Posted on YouTube by USASOC PAO, November 21, 2014. 15 mins).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jvekfdb2Rgk

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) has awarded ten contracts in 2014 totaling over $1 billion to expand its geospatial intelligence programs. One service the NGA will provide in the future is the "Map of the World" - a data portal designed to provide content. One of the customers for this service is the Army - whose Situational Awareness Geospatially Enabled (SAGE) project aims to provide an advance look of unfamiliar territory. SAGE is part of the Distributed Common Ground System - Army (DCGS-A) and is currently in use in Afghanistan. Read more in "NGA on campaign to expand Map of the World", GCN.com, November 20, 2014.

 A writer worries that the fragile gains made for women in Afghanistan will diminish over time as a result of the withdrawal of ISAF. Britain is encouraged to continue its support of Afghan women. Read "Britain urged to give unstinting support for women's rights in Afghanistan", The Guardian, November 21, 2014.

"Saving Mes Aynak" is a documentary about the copper mine that sits on top of an ancient Buddhist site in Logar province. The Chinese want to start digging for copper but an archaeological site is at risk. (PBS Newshour, November 19, 2014).

Commentary on Afghanistan

Iran's Hand in Western Afghanistan. The western province of Farah is experiencing significant security problems. The province shares a border with Iran. Some Afghan's are blaming Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) for aiding the Taliban insurgents in western Afghanistan. Apparently it is believed that Iran does not want to see certain construction projects succeed and it wants to diminish U.S. influence in western Afghanistan. For instance, the TAPI project is a rival to Iran's own regional pipeline project and would increase the influence of Arab Gulf states. Read "Afghans see Iran's hand in Taliban's latest gains in western Afghanistan", Middle East Institute, March 14, 2018.

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