In his second piece on Afghanistan in The Huffington Post, ASP Adjunct Fellow Matt Zeller examines how well-trained Afghan security forces are necessary if the US is to succeed in Afghanistan:

“Thus, over the next ten years, we should train all the Afghan security forces to performance and proficiency standards, rather than arbitrary time standards. And, as we declare districts “secure” or ready to be handed over to the Afghan security forces, we need to immediately follow with sound, focused economic and infrastructure development. We need measurable and simple goals such as: bring electricity to every Afghan home, expand access to primary and secondary education, supply Afghan school children with the writing implements necessary to attend school, etc. Finally, we need to ensure that the Afghan security forces receive their pay and continue to root out the graft that plagues and corrupts the system.”

Read the second part of Matt’s How to Win in Afghanistan here.