With the arrival of 2011, the hope that the US troops will begin their planned drawdown by transferring all the responsibilities to the Afghan forces, has risen. A decade has passed since the US and NATO started their hunt for Bin Laden by employing various strategies and by adopting a completely military approach towards this war on terrorism.
This war, that had primarily been based upon the counterinsurgency strategy comprising of three fundamental phases of; clear, hold and build has shown some progress, so to speak, in reversing the Taliban momentum in Afghanistan, albeit temporarily. This temporary gain, however, can easily become a permanent one if the US strategy enters into the final and most inevitable phase, that is, to transfer the reins of the security of Afghanistan into the hands of the Afghans, who are much better suited, despite the lack of organisation and skills, to take care of their own affairs.
UMAR KHAN
Multan