U.S. will seek billions more to support Afghan military efforts

Afghan border police take their positions following clashes with Pakistani forces on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan in eastern Nangarhar province on Wednesday. (Noorullah Shirzada/AFP/Getty Images)

America’s longest war is about to include more cash for Afghanistan’s army and police force — without any new conditions to try to ensure it doesn’t get gobbled up before making it to the battlefield.

The Starving Children of Helmand Province

The malnutrition ward at Bost Hospital in Lashkar Gah is normally packed with wide-eyed, withered babies and skeletal toddlers with swollen stomachs. But at the moment, only half of the beds are full.

Afghanistan and Opium: Ground Realities

As the International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) reduce their military footprint, Afghanistan faces a threat from illicit narcotics trade that is likely to affect the long-term reconstruction and state building efforts. In the midst of political transition and an unstable security environment, Afghanistan is likely to descend into further chaos due to the illicit activity that funds insurgents, fuels corruption and undermines governance.

Corruption and insecurity in the region have created an environment that is ideal for illegitimate poppy production to expand and fund the insurgent activity (particularly Taliban) in the region. According to Transparency International’s 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index, Afghanistan is the fourth most corrupt country in the world (rank 172nd among 175 countries) marginally ahead of Sudan, North Korea and Somalia, while in World Bank’s 2015 Doing Business Report, it ranks a poor 182nd out of 189 countries. For the past 12 years, Afghan economy has been practically dependent on foreign aid. According to the Ministry of Finance, almost 100 percent of its development budget and 45 percent of its operating budget is externally financed, with the U.S. being the major donor.

As the Taliban Fragments, IS Fights for Influence

The establishment of the Khorasan chapter of the Islamic State in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region strengthens the Islamic State's image as a phenomenon with global reach. But the new chapter's links to the Islamic State are fragile, and it owes its existence more to the fragmentation of the cross-border Taliban movement than to anything the Islamic State has done.

The Khorasan chapter, like other Islamic State affiliates beyond the Syrian-Iraqi battlespace, will be met with local resistance from jihadist forces and al Qaeda who see groups friendly toward the Islamic State as a challenge to their authority.

Afghan poll rivals sign deal on unity government

Afghanistan's feuding presidential candidates signed a deal Friday to form a national unity government, opening an apparent way forward in a dispute over the fraud-tainted election that threatens to revive ethnic conflict.

Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah vowed to work together whoever becomes president after an ongoing audit of all eight million votes finally declares the winner of the June 14 election.

Afghan voters defy Taliban, casting ballots for new president on relatively peaceful day

They huddled in the rain under plastic sheeting. They ignored death threats and sporadic firefights. After weeks of tension and violence, men and women turned out here Saturday in larger numbers than expected to choose a new president to lead them into the post-American era in Afghanistan.

View Photo Gallery — Afghan voters choose new president: Voters turned out in larger numbers than expected Saturday to choose a new president to lead them into the post-American era.

Conducted under armed guard, the country’s third presidential election since the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001 unfolded without the large-scale attacks or major disruptions thatmany Afghans had feared, although scores of minor attacks were reported. As the process moves to a vote count that could take weeks and, potentially, lead to a second-round runoff, voters and observers expressed relief that the day had ended in relative peace.

Photojournalist Anja Niedringhaus Killed by an Afghan policeman while covering the country's upcoming national election

Associated Press photographer Anja Niedringhaus was killed today, shot to death by an Afghan policeman while covering the upcoming national election. She covered conflicts from Bosnia to Afghanistan for more than 20 years, earning a Pulitzer Prize in 2005, as part of a team of AP photographers covering the Iraq War. Last November I was very happy to be able to feature her amazing work in a photo essay titled "Afghanistan: Seen Through the Lens of Anja Niedringhaus." What I wrote then remains true: Documenting a decades-long story like the Afghanistan War is a challenge for any photojournalist, from simple logistical issues, to serious safety concerns, to the difficulty of keeping the narrative fresh and compelling. Niedringhaus did a remarkable job, telling people's stories with a strong, consistent voice, an amazing eye for light and composition, and a level of compassion that clearly shows through her images. A remarkable voice has been lost today. [30 photos]

Karzai tells Susan Rice of more demands for accord extending U.S. troop presence

Efforts by the United States and Afghanistan to finalize a long-term security arrangement appeared on the brink of collapse Monday as Afghan President Hamid Karzai made a new set of demands, and the Obama administration said it would be forced to begin planning for a complete withdrawal of U.S. forces at the end of 2014.

NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images - National Security Advisor Susan Rice speaks about the situation in Syria in this September 9, 2013 file photo. US national security adviser Susan Rice is in Afghanistan, where she met with President Hamid Karzai.

In a two-hour meeting here, Susan E. Rice, President Obama’s top national security adviser, told Karzai that if he failed to sign the bilateral security agreement by the end of this year, the United States would have “no choice” but to prepare for withdrawal, according to a statement by the National Security Council in Washington.

U.S., Afghanistan reach agreement on outline of post-2014 security deal

The United States and Afghanistan agreed Saturday on a draft deal that would keep some U.S. forces in Afghanistan past next year, but only if Afghan political and tribal leaders agree to a key U.S. demand that American troops not be subject to Afghan law, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said.

MOHAMMAD ISMAIL/REUTERS - Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai talks with U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry after a news conference in Kabul on Saturday.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the framework security agreement meets his demands regarding counterterrorism operations on Afghan soil and respects Afghan sovereignty. The U.S. demand to retain legal jurisdiction over all remaining U.S. forces will be put before a loya jirga, Karzai said. He plans to convene the Afghan tribal consultation body next month.

Central Asia and Afghanistan: A Tumultuous History

Contrary to popular perception, Central Asia is not likely to see an immediate explosion of violence and militancy after the U.S. and NATO drawdown from Afghanistan in 2014. However, Central Asia's internal issues and the region's many links with Afghanistan -- including a web of relationships among militant groups -- will add to the volatility in the region. 

Afghan government signals it may join Taliban talks after Kerry call, Karzai spokesman says

An Afghan spokesman says President Hamid Karzai is willing to join peace talks with the Taliban if the U.S. follows through with promises he says were made by Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone call.

The planned talks were thrown into disarray when Karzai canceled a planned delegation to the newly opened Taliban office in Qatar because he said the U.S. broke commitments that the office would not be seen as an embassy or government-in-exile.

Taliban Step Toward Afghan Peace Talks Is Hailed by U.S.

WASHINGTON — The Taliban signaled a breakthrough in efforts to start Afghan peace negotiations on Tuesday, announcing the opening of a political office in Qatar and a new readiness to talk with American and Afghan officials, who said in turn that they would travel to meet insurgent negotiators there within days.

The CIA Has Paid Tens Of Millions Of Dollars To The Afghan President's Office Over The Last Decade

The CIA has been dropping off hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in cash at the offices of Afghan President Hamid Karzai every month or so since January 2003, current and former advisers to Karzai told Matthew Rosenberg of The New York Times.

Russia considers returning to Afghanistan

The Soviet Union's 10-year occupation of Afghanistan cost the country more than 15,000 lives, and an additional 50,000 were wounded. Before the USSR withdrew its forces in 1989, Mikhail Gorbachev described the Soviet efforts to fight the insurgency there as "a bleeding wound." And yet -- just over two decades after leaving what came to be considered the Soviet version of the Vietnam War -- Russia is now eager to return to Afghanistan.

Karzai to Forbid Afghan Forces From Requesting Foreign Airstrikes

President Hamid Karzai said Saturday that he would issue a decree barring Afghan security forces from asking international troops to carry out airstrikes under “any circumstances.”

The announcement came amid anger over a joint Afghan-NATO operation last week that Afghan officials said killed 10 civilians, including women and children, in northeast Kunar Province.

Victory in Aghanistan? Not Without U.S. Troops

During the Vietnam War, Sen. George Aiken, a Vermont Republican, was famous for suggesting that we declare victory and go home. (What he actually said is a little more nuanced, but that was the popular perception.)
President Obama seems to be pursuing a version of this strategy in Afghanistan. At least that is the inference one can draw from his claims of success at a news conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Friday in which the two leaders unveiled an acceleration of the timetable for U.S. troops to step back from combat.

Afghan army ambitions meet limits in violent Pech Valley

Long before U.S. troops departed Combat Outpost Nangalam last fall, they gave their Afghan counterparts a few words of advice: Don’t stay here.

View Photo Gallery — Life and war in Afghanistan: Jan. 2013: Photos of everyday life in Afghanistan as coalition forces attempt to transfer responsibilities to Afghan troops.

Afghan soldiers had already failed once to secure Nangalam on their own, forcing the unplanned return in July 2011 of U.S. troops to one of the country’s most infamous insurgent strongholds. U.S. officials worried that the Afghans were about to make the same mistake again, electing to remain in a remote Konar province valley that would be difficult to defend alone. This time, there would be no backup.

Taliban says planned US withdrawal from Afghanistan akin to its defeat in Vietnam War

The Taliban Wednesday likened the planned withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan to America’s pullout from Vietnam, calling it a “declare victory and run” strategy.

A statement from the militant group said the ongoing transfer of security operations from U.S. troops to Afghan forces was merely a retreat similar to the American withdrawal from South Vietnam prior to the communist victory there in 1975.

Taliban say they don’t want monopoly on power in Afghanistan, pledge rights for women

Taliban representatives at a conference did not insist on total power in Afghanistan and pledged to grant rights to women that the militant Islamist group itself brutally suppressed in the past, according to a Taliban statement received Sunday.

The pledges emerged from a rare meeting last week involving Taliban and Kabul government representatives.

The less strident substance and tone came in a speech delivered at a conference in France. The French hosts described it as a discussion among Afghans rather than peace negotiations.

NATO to remain in Afghanistan until 2014 despite calls for quicker withdrawal

NATO’s top official said Thursday the alliance remains committed to help enable Afghan forces assume full responsibility for the country’s security after 2014, when coalition troops are due to end their combat mission.

The statement by visiting Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen comes amid speculation that the U.S.-led alliance could accelerate its withdrawal plans.