On Monday, October 18th, the Brookings Institution held an event called “What Next for Afghanistan? A Post-Election Analysis.” The panel was moderated by Martin Indyk, Vice President and Director of Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution. The panelists were Thomas Garrett, Vice President for Programs at the International Republican Institute; Michael O’Hanlon, Senior Fellow and Director of Research in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution; Vanda Felbab-Brown, Fellow at the ...

Writing in Politico, Michael O'Hanlon, who recently returned from a trip to Afghanistan, argues that the outlook for that country is more positive than has been reported. "I saw more basis for hope than recent perceptions in the United States would allow." O'Hanlon describes several reasons for optimism: "Four million in turnout is not bad for a midterm election in a troubled, war-torn countryWhatever Karzai’s limitations, there are a number ...

On Monday, September 27th, the Middle East Institute held an event entitled “The Struggle for a Democratic Future in Afghanistan: The 2010 Parliamentary Elections.” Kate Seelye, Vice President of Programs and Communications for MEI, introduced the two speakers: Marvin Weinbaum, scholar at the Middle East Institute, and Caroline Wadhams, Director for South Asia Security Studies at the Center for American Progress. Both recently returned from trips to Afghanistan, where they ...

The United States Institute of Peace held a panel discussion Wednesday titled "Evaluating the State of Democracy in Pakistan". The event was moderated by Moeed Yusuf, South Asia adviser and manager of the Pakistan program at USIP. The panel members were Mohammad Waseem, currently a visiting fellow at the Brooking Institution and professor of political science at Lahore University, Shahid Javed Burki, a former Senior Economist at the World Bank ...

The Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan has called on the Electoral Complaints Commission to “decisively adjudicate all complaints submitted after Saturday’s parliamentary elections.” FEFA election observers reportedly submitted 583 reports of election violations (including candidates using state funds for their campaigns and government representatives illegally supporting candidates) over a period of about five weeks. They also found numerous cases of election-related intimidation, including threats from the Taliban to ...

With the Taliban calling for a boycott and some in the Hazara community already complaining about interference in the voting process, this Saturday's parliamentary elections will likely be a fractious event. Writing at The Diplomat, Karlos Zurutuza takes the temperature of Afghans in Kabul. Many seem to have already decided on a candidate for reasons ranging from shared ethnic identity to simple competence. In a hopeful sign, 410 women are running ...

With parliamentary elections three days away and the beginning of a major offensive outside of Kandahar, worries about the coalition's mission in Afghanistan are growing. Gilles Dorronsoro spotlights the deteriorating security condition in the country: "While it is still safe in Kabul, you can feel the Taliban tightening its hold around the capital. The Taliban have a great deal of influence, but even where they haven’t established control, the ...

The New America Foundation held a panel discussion today to introduce the Afghanistan Study Group's paper, "A New Way Forward: Rethinking U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan". (PDF here) The panel members were all members of the study group, although not all of them signed the finished product making for an interesting discussion. The panel included Paul Pillar (Director of Graduate Studies, Center for Peace and Security Studies, Georgetown University and former ...

Writing in The New Yorker, Steve Coll suggests that for all of Pakistan’s problems, there is a way forward. According to Coll, Pakistan must first seek peace with India and then develop a stronger, export-based economy. Coll cites Indonesia’s experience as a potential model: "Indonesia, which, like Pakistan, has a large Muslim population and implausible borders left behind by imperialists, suffered badly a decade ago from separatist violence, Al Qaeda-linked ...

Afghanistan's parliamentary elections will be held on September 18th in Afghanistan. Tina Blohm reports from Paktika on the difficulties of running free and fair elections there.  The problems range from a shrinking number of polling places (190, down from 265 in last year's presidential elections) due to security issues, to a lack of poll workers brought about by a fear of insurgent reprisals, and the fact that "According to the ...

At Democracy Digest, Michael Allen covers a recent Brookings Institution event featuring Steve Coll, Vali Nasr, and Michael O'Hanlon, exploring the effectiveness of U.S. strategy in Afghanistan. According to Coll, NATO has made a "Faustian Pact" with local warlords by sacrificing the long term development of civil society for short term security gains. Coll also expressed concern that too much emphasis is being paid to centralization at the cost of ...

Daud Khattak writes in Foreign Policy that in the midst of the flood crisis in Pakistan, fears of targeted killings by the Taliban have not only sent key secular leaders into hiding, but also contributed to a lack of leadership in the Peshawar province, providing "an opening for religious and pro-Taliban elements to win the hearts and minds of the hundreds of thousands in the area." Pointing out the ineffectiveness ...

Last month, in a delegation organized by Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), four members of the House of Representatives met in Europe with ethnic minority leaders from Afghanistan who oppose "President Hamid Karzai and his U.S.-backed initiative to open political negotiations with the Taliban." Rohrabacher recently stated that no one in Afghanistan wants a central government, adding that "That's the model that we have been trying to force with our military ...

The U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing to discuss reconciliation and reintegration in Afghanistan. Touching on issues of governance and civil institution building, the hearing was twelve in a series the Committee has held on Afghanistan in the past 18 months. The Committee—chaired by Sen. John F. Kerry (D-MA), with ranking Committee member Sen. Richard G. Lugar (R-IN) in attendance—requested the testimony of three individuals: the Honorable ...

Following the Afghanistan conference in London, President Hamid Karzai returned to his country optimistic, as reported in an article for The Christian Science Monitor.  Outcomes of the conference included an increase in governmental control of Western aid from 20% to 50% and NATO support for Taliban engagement, with $140 million pledged towards the dual goals of reconciliation and reintegration. The $140 million was announced by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown ...

The much anticipated London Conference got underway this morning, with delegations from more than 60 countries gathering to tackle issues of Afghan security, governance and development, and regional support. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown opened with remarks on the collaborative effort to bring Afghanistan greater stability and prosperity. To perhaps assuage concerns over the recent rise in troop levels, Brown affirmed that "the increase in our military efforts must be matched ...

Navi Pillay writes in the Daily Star that today's conference on Afghanistan in London will be best-served by tackling human rights concerns in the country, where "even the modest human rights gains achieved in the last eight years are under threat." Pillay argues that groups like the Taliban have benefited from an environment of lawlessness which has enabled them to organize and intensify their operations. Afghan disillusionment with democratization is not surprising, ...

Dexter Filkins of the New York Times reports in an article entitled, "Kabul Attack Shows Resilience of Afghan Militants," on the attack made by Taliban militants early Monday morning in the city of Kabul. According to Filkins' article a total of five people were killed during the course of the attacks with another 71 being injured. The assault, consisting of a group of militants and two suicide bombers, took place ...

Time reports that Mohammad Yunos Shirnagha, a member of the Afghan parliament, was mistakenly killed in a shoot-out with police who were attempting to ambush a Taliban transport.  The New York Times reports that President Karzai has called for an investigation into the murder of his 18 year-old cousin Waheed Karzai. Waheed's family believe he was murdered by another Karzai family member as part of an old family feud, leading President Karzai ...

Laura Rozen explores who will replace Kai Eide as the head of the U.N. mission in Afghanistan. She reports rumors that Swedish diplomat Staffan de Mistura is the "top contender" for the position and is an American favorite. At the same time, there are reports that French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner has expressed interest in the job, but other sources explain Kouchner is looking to serve as an E.U. envoy equivalent to ...