Two Good Articles for Understanding Afghanistan

By Barry Rubin

While these two articles seem to be in argument, if you read both of them and see the overlap this will give a good sense of the situation and prospects for Afghanistan.

Diana West skewers the U.S. strategy as trying to change a society that just doesn't fit the model being employed. Using his own military experience, Bruce Kesler points out while the strategy partly makes sense but also needs to be altered. Both see the Obama Administration's political leaders as being the main problem but note that General McChrystal's approach--which the White House accepted, albeit with fewer troops deployed--also has serious weaknesses.

For my article that discusses these issues more generally see here.