EDITORIAL: Quagmire in Afghanistan

It is immensely difficult to rebuild a failed nation while fighting terrorism. That sums up the situation in Afghanistan, which is fast becoming a quagmire. The international community has come to terms with the difficulty of the task confronting the conflict-ridden country.

The United States, which has emphasized a military solution and which is at the forefront of military action in Afghanistan, is embroiled in its longest war, exceeding even the Vietnam War.

An international conference was held in Kabul on July 20 to find a way to end the war.

The gathering was attended by representatives of more than 70 countries and organizations. It agreed to a proposal by Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai, to transfer control of security from the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to the Kabul government by 2014.

Kabul's plan to promote reconciliation with moderates of the anti-government Taliban, who have no ties with the al-Qaida terrorist network, were also recognized.

U.S. President Barack Obama's strategy to encourage Afghanistan's independence and start withdrawing U.S. forces in July 2011 underlies those decisions.

Realizing those goals will be very difficult, however.

To begin with, operations to mop up the Taliban have not gone as planned even though Obama has tripled the U.S. troop strength since his inauguration.

Far from containing the Taliban, both U.S. forces and the ISAF suffered their highest casualties in June. The security situation is actually getting worse.

This led to the dismissal of the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan after he criticized the Obama administration for its policy on military operations.

In a recent U.S. public opinion poll, 43 percent of respondents said the war in Afghanistan was worth fighting. The figure was the lowest since Obama became president.

The main cause of concern is the Karzai administration itself.

Karzai has taken the reins of rebuilding Afghanistan ever since the Taliban government collapsed following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

But his government has made little progress on some key issues, such as reconciliation of the Afghan people, improvement of governance and measures to fight bribery and corruption.

As a result, the Taliban has recovered its strength noticeably in recent years, and its offensive has intensified.

The conference in Kabul also backed the Afghan government's plan to try to rehabilitate former Taliban fighters and create jobs by developing farming communities and improving infrastructure.

But it will be difficult to implement those plans if the Karzai administration doesn't fundamentally change its ways.

Drastic measures are needed to find a breakthrough.

For example, if the current administration is unable to negotiate with Taliban moderates, why not have the U.N. secretary-general and representatives of other international organizations act as go-betweens?

If Afghanistan becomes a base for terrorist organizations with a global reach, the fundamental problem will remain unsolved--even after U.S. forces and troops of other countries have withdrawn.

Threats to the international community will continue to grow if this messy situation is left to fester.

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 22