Afghanistan

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Afghanistan has long been a crossroads of world cultures, economies, politics, and militaries. RAND's early research on Afghanistan examined the 1980s Soviet military campaign and the subsequent fundamentalist Islamic regime. Since Operation Enduring Freedom, the 2001 U.S. military effort to rout the Taliban and find Osama bin Ladin's Al Qaeda network, RAND has engaged the new Afghan government, military, and people to support reconstruction, counterinsurgency, and nation-building efforts.

Research conducted by: Center for Asia Pacific Policy; RAND Project AIR FORCE; RAND National Security Research Division; RAND Arroyo Center; Initiative for Middle Eastern Youth; Center for Middle East Public Policy

Periodicals (3)

Resurgence of al Qaeda — Sep 21, 2012

In the fight against al Qaeda, both President Obama and Governor Romney should place greater emphasis on the expansion of al Qaeda's global network beyond Afghanistan and Pakistan.

U.S. Military Has Struggled to Retain Afghan Popular Support Since 2006 — May 11, 2012

Even when the U.S. military took all the right steps, its credibility was undercut by concern among Afghans in contested areas that their own government would be unable to protect them from a vengeful Taliban once U.S. and NATO forces left.

Three Pots of Tea: Peace in Afghanistan Depends on Its Leaders, Neighbors, and Security Forces — Jan 13, 2012

There are three key ingredients for peace in Afghanistan. Afghan leaders must negotiate a peace. Afghan neighbors must respect the peace. And Afghan soldiers and police must keep the peace.

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Researcher Spotlight

Jonah Blank

Senior Political Scientist

Jonah Blank

Jonah Blank is a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation. An anthropologist by training, he is author of the books Mullahs on the Mainframe: Islam & Modernity Among the Daudi Bohras, and Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God: Retracing the Ramayana through India. From 1999-2011, Blank…

Terrence K. Kelly

Director, Strategy, Doctrine, and Resources Program, RAND Arroyo Center

Terrence Kelly is the director of the Strategy, Doctrine, and Resources Program at the RAND Arroyo Center and has been a senior operations researcher at RAND for over ten years. Over the past decade at RAND he has worked on counterinsurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan; DoD and Army strategy; and…

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