The Foreign Service Journal, December 2014

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2014 27 to women’s and children’s rights. Still, our overall record is mixed, and a great deal remains to be done. We have built roads that are falling apart, set up schools without teachers and failed to help Afghans build institutions of good gover- nance. We have enriched some of the country’s most corrupt actors through poor contracting practices; failed to deliver progress in such key security sectors as air power and intelligence; and squandered our politi- cal capital on misguided e orts to get a secret bilateral deal with the Taliban (while ignoring the key internal political dynamics of Afghan society). And we have killed and humiliated far too many Afghans and damaged too much of their country in the pursuit of our coun- terterrorism policies. Despite our mistakes and failures, however, we have much to be proud of and most Afghans still want us on the ground as partners. After a tense period, the millions of voters who surprised the world by their massive election turnout now have a reform government with a true mandate. Afghans take pride in their accomplishments on the world stage—like the soccer and cricket teams that have surged into prominence— and want to be part of the global community. For that to hap- pen, though, Afghans themselves must take the lead. The good news is that they are already doing so. Their sol- diers and police are now fully responsible for fighting the Tali- ban, and are acquitting themselves well. Afghan women and young people are blazing new paths as they take advantage of their newfound access to education to build free and vigorous media and start new businesses across the country. But for Afghanistan to achieve the kind of enduring success it deserves, the United States must continue to stand by our partner. As we have seen in Iraq, Libya and too many other places, when America stands aside—when we abandon what we started, and leave things half-done—the chances of failure increase dramatically and new, worse problems emerge. Pre- tending that the world will do what we want when we do not lead, and are not exemplars of our own values, is the de nition of irresponsibility. Immediate Challenges e country’s new president, Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, has started o well. His post-election personal outreach to multiple sectors of society seeks to identify the government with the interests of the people, rather than as an instrument of power brokers. He has also recast Kabul’s relationship with the United States and NATO by living up to his campaign promise to sign security agreements that give the permissions necessary for the United States and NATO to assist Afghani- stan’s security forces beyond 2014. And he is moving rapidly to shore up Afghanistan’s nances in anticipation of a potentially destabilizing revenue crunch. Still, the new government faces severe, immediate chal- lenges. Security throughout the country faces growing threats as a messy, too-rapid pullback of international forces is leaving major gaps. Both the Afghan military and civilians continue to su er high casualties, and the Taliban is preparing to carry out a major military o ensive next year. (Sadly, the agreements Presi- dent Ghani signed allow the U.S. and NATO to help, but actually promise nothing concrete in terms of troops or assistance.) After a tense period, the millions of voters who surprised the world with their massive election turnout now have a reform government with a true mandate. Fans go wild after Afghanistan scores its second goal against Pakistan in the home side’s 3-0 victory in August 2013. The team’s success has been a bright spot and point of pride and national unity for Afghans. Casey Garret Johnson