Report from Afghanistan and Iraq

Lt. Col. Karl Schneider '91
Afghanistan/Iraq
April 6, 2010

Report from the field: Report from Afghanistan and Iraq

During a Staff Assistance Visit last February to Afghanistan and Iraq, LTC Karl Schneider 91' observed the following and makes this an Unclassified and personal report from the field:

Forces in Afghanistan continue to increase in number and take the fight to Al Qaeda and the Taliban. The conventional forces resources required to adequately fight an insurgency are arriving rapidly...and yet, the Green Berets are still living in the villages, eating goats, chickens, and more importantly, living like the local tribesmen. . .where the long lasting impact must and will occur. Recommend reading "One Tribe at a Time" by MAJ Jim Gant, USA SF. He is spot on.

While in Iraq I observed movement in earnest in preparation for the pending mission change from Operation IRAQI FREEDOM to Operation NEW DAWN that will mark the transition of our Brigade Combat Teams to "Advisory and Assist Brigades." The challenges will be to accept the risks that come with advising indigenous units on whatever mission they are conducting. If not, then whatever stability has been reached will be lost very rapidly. I also observed continued friction between the Sunni, Shia, and Kurds exacerbated by outside actors such as Iran. Iraq's neighborhood is a hostile environment populated with neighbors who actively work to see it not succeed.