Research & Publications: Afghanistan

Stanizai contrasts more optimistic reports by addressing the systemic violence and corruption present in the Afghan government and calling for a national reconciliation that addresses past violations.

Recent media coverage of the Afghan war questions whether we’ve made meaningful progress towards security and an effective Government in that country. Or were the past ten years a lost decade for the Afghans and Coalition partners? This ten-year milestone is a good point in time to pause, check Afghanistan’s progress, and assess where it appears to be headed. With the assistance of over 40 nations, Afghanistan developed its infrastructure and has taken major steps towards self sufficiency. Strategic decisions to rebuild the Afghan National Security Forces and educational system laid the foundation for today’s improvements of the economy. One fact cannot be disputed: in the history of the modern world, no third world country has received as much outpouring of support and aid as has Afghanistan since 2001.

A reevaluation of prominent assumptions about Afghanistan, and recommendations for further international involvement.

Kamrany analyzes social, cultural, and historical factors underlying the Taliban's resistance to the U.S. presence in Afghanistan, and outlines some suggestions for the U.S. and international community about how to quell the insurgency and foster stability in the country as the U.S.'s planned withdrawal approaches.

Bruce Richardson raises an important issue regarding the protection, trafficking, and exploitation of cultural patrimony. Aspects of this issue range across research, polemics, and litigation in attempts to document loss, return treasures, or on the other hand prevent restitution or repatriation. Richardson properly decries cultural looting, but we must distinguish among causes to reach agreement on protective steps.

In order to build institutions and strengthen linkages between central, provincial, district, and village-level governance in Afghanistan, there is the need for implementation of sound, viable programs, not unrealistic projects designed to cover every aspect of the governance process. Former Deputy Minister of the Afghan Government Shahmahmood Miakhel discusses the Afghanistan Stabilisation Program (ASP) which, despite its flaws, provides a long-term strategy for developing governance in Afghanistan.

Beijing and Moscow may increasingly undercut America's stance on Iran