AfPak Crisis: Will a military solution work?

Last week, President Obama announced the U.S. will send an additional 17,000 troops to Afghanistan. Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) calls Afghanistan so challenging a war and such a large country that the U.S. will need 600,000 troops to fully squelch the violence, but that he sees the situation as a diplomatic mission. In Pakistan, many watch warily as the government becomes increasingly weak and unstable in a nuclear-armed country. The war in Afghanistan has spilled over into Pakistan in the trans-border regions, called Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATAs).

What is the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan? Is there one?

Many experts are calling for the U.S. to lead with diplomacy in Afghanistan and that there is not a military solution in Afghanistan. General David McKiernan and President Obama declared that we are not winning the war in Afghanistan. Last Friday, President Obama said he would consider talks with moderate elements of the Taliban if his Administration�s review recommends it.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has scheduled a meeting on Afghanistan for the end of March. Clinton is trying to build a coalition among governments to address issues in Afghanistan and Pakistan and help stabilize the countries. She has reached out to Iran to participate, and Iran has accepted. Clinton noted that Iran helped the U.S. fight Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan in 2002.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says he cannot predict when we will leave Afghanistan but it will not be soon. The U.S. has spent $173 billion on Afghanistan so far and the price tag could reach a trillion dollars by 2012 with the escalation of fighting. President Obama has promised not to �hide� the cost of the war in emergency spending bills and instead put all costs in the budget for the public to see.

Should the U.S. engage in talks with the more moderate members of the Taliban? Can Iran help stabilize the region? Can we afford an escalation of the war in Afghanistan?

Is Pakistan teetering on the brink of collapse?

A recent attack on a Sri Lankan cricket team in Pakistan that left 6 Pakistani police dead and several others injured revealed its lack of security. Pakistan is the second most populous Muslim country and the only Muslim nation to have declared nuclear weapons status. Many fear that Pakistan�s instability will lead to collapse, and their nuclear weapons will not be protected.

Pakistani politics have been unstable at best over the last few years, with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, martial law declared by Former President Musharraf, his eventual resignation, and the rivalry between President Zardari and his former coalition partner, Nawaz Sharif. The Pakistani Supreme Court last week banned Sharif from holding elective office. Many fear the continued political instability, mixed with economic woes and the fight against terrorism, will push Pakistan over the edge.

How can the U.S. help stabilize Pakistan and Afghanistan? Are Pakistan�s nuclear weapons secure?