NATO Sending More Troops to Afghanistan for August Elections

With violence in Afghanistan continuing to escalate to levels not seen since the initial U.S. invasion in 2001, NATO has ordered that 4,000 new troops be brought in to help ensure a fair and free election in August. There are already roughly 70,000 foreign soldiers stationed in Afghanistan, most of whom are engaged in operations to quell Taliban insurgent attacks throughout the mountainous border regions with Pakistan.

Pakistan's recent offerings of truce to sects of Taliban fighters have many in the region looking to similar tactics to try to stabilize the region. The Obama administration has addressed the possibility of cooperating with "moderate" Taliban in an effort to try to bridge the diplomatic gap and find some means of reaching a short-term peace agreement.

In the meantime, U.S. and foreign soldiers continue to try to hunt and destroy the elusive bands of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters who roam freely throughout the Afghan mountains. With such an inherent advantage in terms of local knowledge and understanding of the terrain, the Taliban have proven nearly impossible to isolate and engage. As a result, the overall progress of U.S. forces in Afghanistan is difficult to measure at best and considered an ongoing failure at worst.

There is still hope that significant progress can be made on the ground in the months leading to the August elections. If an open and publicly acknowledged election is able to take place peacefully, NATO and the U.S. will be able to point to it as a sign of success and progress.