Survival: Global Politics and Strategy, vol. 51, no. 1, February–March 2009, pp. 81-82, 97-98
5th IISS Regional Security Summit, The Manama Dialogue, First Plenary Session, ‘The US and the Regional Balance of Power’ and
Fifth Plenary Session, ‘Changing Regional Security Architecture’.
Full transcripts
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<first 250 words of each section>
Afghan Q&A: Robert Gates
François Heisbourg, Chairman, IISS Council:
My question is about Afghanistan. You described the challenges and some of the responses, but I would like you to go into more detail about what you expect other nations to contribute in military terms. Since I am a European, what would you expect European partners and allies of the United States to be contributing? More generally, what would you consider to be the appropriate balance, the appropriate policy mix, between the military surge on the one hand, and the political and economic efforts in Afghanistan and in the region on the other hand?
Robert Gates, US Secretary of Defense:
One of my European colleagues remarked last year that I was guilty of megaphone diplomacy when it came to seeking additional help. At this point, US forces and the forces of our partner nations are about in balance. There are approximately 33,000 US troops, and approximately 33,000+ troops from Europe and other partner nations. As is evident to everyone who reads the newspaper, we are looking at sending significant additional forces over the course of the next months; another brigade combat team will go in January, and we hope to send two more by late spring or early summer.
With respect to the Europeans and our other partner nations, it is important to recognise the achievement. The Europeans and our partners have actually increased their forces by about 10,000 over the past year, and that is an important achievement. I think it is also important...
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Afghan Q&A: David Petraeus
Toby Dodge, IISS Consulting Senior Fellow for the Middle East:
I wanted to draw General Petraeus out on the balance of resources and troop numbers between Afghanistan and Iraq, and how he would seek to avoid the dangers of robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Douglas Hurd, Former UK Foreign Secretary:
Almost everyone on the panel has emphasised the need for coordinating the civilian and the defence elements everywhere, but particularly in Afghan-istan. A great deal of that is being done, and everyone agrees with it. On the ground, however, based on anecdotal evidence very different things are happening. This is really about the structure inside the participating countries – Britain, France, the United States, and so on – where the people who deliver the aid are quite different from the people who do the fighting. They are different in uniform, their bureaucracies are different, their timescales are different, and their psychology is different. This is all the result of institutions’ history, which we all in this room understand. However, in an Afghan village where there has been a fire fight, where there are people who are dead, and where immediately you need a clinic, a school, and maybe a magistrates’ court within days or weeks, not months or years, how can we break down inside our own systems the division between the civilian and the military? I know there is work going on in this respect, and I would be interested for General Petraeus or Pierre Lellouche to tell us about that work.
David Petraeus, Commander, US CENTCOM:
For Toby Dodge, we have developed a tentative plan that on the one hand allows us in a flexible and responsible way to draw down forces in Iraq – in fact, you may have noted that we actually went to 14 ground brigade combat teams a month or so early – and we have made some other smaller decisions since then; this is from a height of 20 combat brigade teams during the surge. We have a tentative plan and have briefed it as far as the joint chiefs of staff and the secretary of defense, and we will probably take this forward in the next few weeks. It also seeks to answer the requirements that General McKiernan has established in quite a forthright and open manner, both up...
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Related Articles
Doctrine and Reality in Afghanistan by Adam Roberts (February–March 2009)
The Way Forward in Afghanistan: Three Views by Barnet Rubin, Amin Saikal and Julian Lindley-French (February–March 2009)
Afghan Diary by Rodric Braithwaite (February–March 2009)
Averting Failure in Afghanistan by Seth G. Jones (Spring 2006)
Securing Afghanistan’s Border by Amin Saikal (Spring 2006)
Walking Softly in Afghanistan: The Future of UN State-Building by Simon Chesterman (Autumn 2002)
Afghanistan after the Loya Jirga by Amin Saikal (Autumn 2002)
The Taliban Papers by Tim Judah (Spring 2002)
