Word: nato
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...many Afghanistan experts, that's as it should be. U.S. security goals in the region, they argue, cannot be achieved purely by military means; good governance and modern institutions are essential to prevent the resurgence of extremism and to allow American and NATO troops to someday head home. "Democracy and development have to be part of any exit strategy," says the Rand Corp.'s James Dobbins, who was President Bush's first envoy to Kabul. (Read "Afghanistan Exit Strategy: Buying Off the Taliban...
...frequency and ferocity of attacks by insurgents have spiked. The U.N. reports that in the first six months of 2009, civilian casualties from such attacks - as well as from friendly fire - are 24% higher than in the corresponding period last year. July was the worst month ever for the NATO-led coalition forces: 76 soldiers were killed, more than half of them Americans. (See pictures of the U.S. Marines new offensive in Afghanistan...
Election officials have already warned that about 10% of the 7,000 planned voting stations may not open due to insecurity, mostly in Helmand and Kandahar provinces. In Kandahar city, Afghan and NATO forces have reinforced checkpoints and shut down traffic near central voting stations. Police chief General Mirwais Khan says that while several surrounding districts are "hostile," security is "assured" for a peaceful election in the city as a whole. The Afghan intelligence chief has confirmed reports that Ahmed Wali Karzai, the president's half-brother and head of the Kandahar provincial council, has brokered deals with some influential...
...come about if rival Waziri militant groups isolate the Taliban's Mehsud group and seize control for themselves. Mehsud had notoriously clashed with Waziri commanders Maulvi Nazir in South Waziristan and Hafiz Gul Bahadur in North Waziristan, who, unlike Mehsud, have focused on mounting crossborder attacks on U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan. When Mehsud assumed the leadership of the Pakistan Taliban in late 2007, Bahadur had been one of his closest rivals. "This will be an opportunity for the Wazir tribe to take back its position in the Taliban," says Rana...
...Yushchenko has similarly annoyed Russian political leaders with his attempts to move Ukraine toward Western structures such as the European Union and NATO. Moscow has responded with a series of threats and cuts to gas supplies to try to keep Ukraine in check, along with appeals to the countries' historical and cultural links. The Church, which enjoys strong relations with the Kremlin, is in a unique position to lend support to Moscow's attempts to keep Ukraine close, given its claims to spiritual authority over Ukrainian territory. "Our historical past is here, and our future will to a large extent...