Understanding the Afghan Challenge

David Miliband, UK Foreign Secretary | February 26, 2009

The deployment of an additional 17,000 US troops in Afghanistan is a welcome response to the enduring threat of the Taliban. ++ Military might alone, however, is no solution: "defeating the insurgency means understanding it." ++ State-building and incentives to deter opportunistic insurgents are needed. ++ Pakistani talebanization must also be urgently addressed and the government’s increasingly hard line on insurgents must be supported and encouraged. ++ If we act with care, "military force can directly support a political solution."