McMaster, H.R., 243–244
McMullen, Ronald, 139
McNamara, Robert, xvi
McNeill, Dan, xv, 15, 109, 111, 113, 125
meetings, cultural practices in Afghanistan, 71–72
Metrinko, Michael, 21–22, 135, 136
Miakhel, Shahmahmood, 223
military. See Afghan army; U.S. Army; U.S. troops
military operations. See also airstrikes; casualties; war strategy at Afghanistan-Pakistan border, 77–79, 81
Azizabad attack, 177–178
bombing of wedding party, 177
eradicating opium production, 253–254
during Iraq War, 47–48
joint operations, 129, 214
at Kunduz, 233
major offensives in 2003, 50
night raids, 178–179
under Obama, 228, 233, 246
Operation Iron Tempest, 253
Operation Medusa, 105–106
Rumsfeld’s press conference on ending of, 44–45
successes, in early phase of the war, 3–4, 10–11
Tora Bora, capture of bin Laden at, 23–25
under Trump administration, 246–247
2015-2016, 229
U.S. lying to news media about, xi
Miller Center, xix. See also oral-history interviews, University of Virginia
Miller, Scott, 248–249, 250–251, 263
Milley, Mark, 211, 220–221
Mission Accomplished speech, 43–44
mission creep, 7–8
mission of War in Afghanistan. See objectives and goals of War in Afghanistan
Mohammed, Khalid Sheikh, 82
money laundering, 183, 188
MSNBC interview, 5
mujahedin, 116–117, 118, 123
Mullah Omar, Mohammed, 20, 27, 74, 134–135, 151
Mullen, Mike, 145, 146, 147, 201
Musharraf, Pervez, 82, 83–84, 85–86, 93–94
Nangahar province, 123, 177, 235, 247
narcotics, 100, 130, 138, 188, 253. See also opium production/trade
National Guard troops, 60, 164, 243
National Public Radio (NPR), 85, 152
National Security Council strategy paper, 8–9
nation-building, 14, 53, 241, 242. See also opium production/trade under Bush, 30–39
Gates on, 104
Lessons Learned interview illustrating failure of, 230
under Obama, 158–168, 258
one nation at a time, 45–46
Rumsfeld on, 45
security assistance expenses, 58–59
NATO and NATO-led coalition civilian death statistics, 208
increase in troops, 153
insider attacks on personnel of, 214, 215–216
night raids, 178
restricted to “non-combat” roles, 229
NATO (allies) and NATO-led coalition Article 5, xii
bureaucratic dysfunction, 107
differences among troops, 106–107, 108
Eikenberry’s efforts to get support from, 94
mission statement of War in Afghanistan, 150–151
Operation Medusa, 105–106
poppy production programs, 258
positive public reports about, 113
responsibilities in Afghanistan, 105
restricted to combat in self-defense, 150
war on opium and, 133–134, 136, 137
war strategy, 106, 108–109
NATO headquarters, Taliban suicide bombings/assaults on, 202
Navy SEALs, 18, 112, 199, 274
Nelson, Joshua, 213
Nena, Sapuro, 213
Netherlands, 105
Neumann, Ronald, 95–96, 98, 123, 132, 133, 138, 140, 175
New Ansari Money Exchange, 188–189
The News Tribune, 216
The New York Times, 25, 181
Nicholson, John, 147, 237, 243, 245–246, 248
Niedringhaus, Anja, 214
night raids, 178–180
9/11. See September 11th terrorist attacks
9/11 Commission, xiii
Norland, Richard, 115, 116, 176
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). See NATO and NATO-led coalition
Northern Alliance, 9, 10, 26, 83, 118–119, 125, 172, 264
Novak, Brent, 70–71
Obama, Barack (administration), xiii on Afghan security forces, 218, 219
Biden’s recommendations to, 274
breaking promise to end the war, 233–234
on corruption, 183–185, 190, 192
counterinsurgency strategy, 149–150, 158, 201
on “end” of the war, 227–228
firing McChrystal, 156
on Iraq War, 228–229
military operations under, 228, 233, 246
misleading statistics/metrics by, 203–208
nation-building campaign under, 158–168
on opium production/trade, 256–257, 259, 261
prisoners of war and, 270–271
reconciliation efforts with Taliban, 266–268, 269, 270–271
speech at West Point (2009), 157–158
timeline imposed by, 153
troop surge strategy, 152–153, 157, 206–207, 209, 230, 244
troop withdrawal, 201, 228
Trump compared with, 241, 244–245
U.S.-Afghan security agreement, 231
U.S. spending under, 30, 158–163
war strategy, 17, 146, 147–149, 152–153, 158, 230
objectives and goals of War in Afghanistan. See also war strategy in Afghanistan, during Iraq War, 47
basic mission given to every commander, 205
Bush on, 8, 14
focus on al-Qaeda versus Taliban, 20
lack of, 7, 14–15, 109, 110
Lessons Learned interviews on, xv, 7–8, 14, 20, 110, 150
mission statement of U.S. and NATO, 150–151
for nation-building, 34
unclear, in 2008, 147–148
U.S. troops asking, 154
Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, xiv. See also Lessons Learned interviews
Olson, Eric, 22, 84, 265
Operation Avalanche, 50
Operation Bodyguard, xi
Operation Iraqi Freedom, 43–44
Operation Iron Tempest, 253–254
Operation Mountain Resolve, 50
Operation Mountain Viper, 50
Operation River Dance, 129, 130–132, 133, 137, 138, 139, 140, 254
opium production/trade, xv, 33, 110 aerial spraying program, 138–139, 140
Afghan warlords and, 124–125, 126
airstrikes on opium labs, 253–254
ban on, 134–135
Bush administration on, 129–133, 136–141, 256
cash-for-poppies program, 136
corruption and, 137–138
failure of programs to stop, 254–259, 261–262
increase in/success of, 129–130
Karzai, Ahmed Wali and, 175–176
law enforcement efforts, 259–261
Obama administration on, 256–257, 259, 261
Operation River Dance, 129, 130–132, 133, 140
opium, 134
success/growth of, 254–255, 257
switching crops, 256–257
Taliban and, 129–130, 132–133, 134, 137
Uruzgan province, 74
U.S. spending on war against, 137, 254, 259
oral-history interviews Foreign Service officers/diplomatic, xvii, 21–22, 27, 51, 95, 96, 120, 135, 139, 172, 176, 181, 258
University of Virginia, xix, 9, 11, 15, 19, 24, 46, 52, 53, 104, 112, 171, 173
U.S. Army, xviii–xix, 8, 12, 13, 22, 24, 38, 47, 57, 60, 62, 65, 67, 70, 71, 72, 76, 78, 84, 92, 96, 100, 101, 109, 121, 126, 131, 132, 133, 137, 148, 150, 154, 216, 221–222, 225, 268
Pace, Peter, xix, 9, 10–11, 52
Pakistan/Pakistani border al-Qaeda followers in, 20
Biden on Navy SEA
LS in, 274
bin Laden in, 23, 24, 25
bin Laden killed in, 199
Bonn conference and, 26
border sanctuaries, 93, 96, 110, 152, 201
contractor transportation costs and, 187
diplomatic efforts, 147
insurgents and weapons from, 80
Ishaqzai fleeing to, 260
ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence), 81–82
Islamic State in, 235
Karzai and, 172, 174, 179
McChrystal’s war report on, 151–152
military spending, 220
negotiations and, 272
operations at Pakistan-Afghanistan border, 77–78, 81
playing both sides, 82–86
Shkin ambush, 77–79, 80–81
Taliban and, 82–83, 86–87, 93, 96, 100
Panetta, Leon, 199–201, 202–203
Panjwai district, 105, 106
Pardo-Maurer, Roger, 17–18
Partlow, Joshua, 121
Paschal, David, 38
Pashto language, 57, 67, 68, 70
Pashtuns/Pashtun tribes, 13, 19, 26, 74, 77, 83, 151, 172, 174, 264, 267
Patterson, Brian, 107
Paul, Rand, xviii
peace talks/negotiations, 235–236, 248, 249, 263–268, 267, 269–270, 271–274
Pentagon. See also U.S. Army Afghan police and, 65–66
corruption and, 186–187
lack of clarity in orders by (2001), 8
misleading or false information from, 18, 203
training a new Afghan army, 33
Trump’s meeting at, 243
Pentagon Papers, xvi
Perry, Nathan, 177
Petraeus, David, 149, 153, 155, 156, 163–164, 194, 207, 258, 264
Phillips, Richard, 109
Plan Colombia, 138
Plummer, Christopher, 61, 72
police force. See Afghan police force; Afghan security forces
Popiak, John, 150
poppy. See opium production/trade
poppy palaces, 183
Powell, Colin, 32, 34, 51–52, 58
press conferences, 5, 11, 45, 47–48, 50, 113, 114, 147, 232
prisoners of war, 270–271
propaganda, soccer, 68–69
psychological operations (psy-ops), 67–68, 69, 100
public-health project, 168
public support for War in Afghanistan, xii, 228
Qatar, 263, 269, 270, 271, 272, 273
Rabbani, Burhanuddin, 269
Rabe, Rick, 60
Raziq, Abdul, 250
Reed, Conrad, 81
Reeder, Edward Jr., 148
Reese, James, 70
religious codes of conduct/customs, 66
Rice, Condoleezza, 34, 52, 65
Richards, David, xv, 105–106, 109
roadside bombings, 93, 95
Rodebaugh, William, 24
Rodock, Robert, 223–224
Rodriguez, David, 93
Rohrabacher, Dana, 119–120
Roland, Matthew, 232–233
Ross, Douglas, 132
Rota, Ulf, 268
Rubin, Barnett, 26, 27, 137, 152, 153, 170, 184, 259, 267
Rucker, Philip, 243
Rumsfeld, Donald on Afghan army training, 58, 59
on “Afghanistan: Five Years Later” paper, 99
on Afghan police, 65
Dostum, Abdul Rashid and, 119
on escape of bin Laden, 25
Gates, Robert replacing, 104
health problems, 52
interview with Brian Williams, 5
on Iraq, 47–48
on Karzai, 174
lack of sympathy with general, 106
leadership traits, 52–54
meeting with Tommy Franks, 46
misleading the public about the war(s), 47–48, 49–50, 54, 96
MSNBC interview, 5
on nation-building, 34–36
on opium production/trade, 137–138
on Pakistan and Musharraf, 82, 85
Powell, Colin and, 51–52
press conference with Karzai, 44–45
private doubts and misgivings, 4, 5–6
snowflakes, xvii, xviii, xx, 4–5, 15, 23, 49–50, 58, 65, 82, 99, 119, 137, 174
on telling lies during wartime, xi–xii, 5
Tora Bora campaign and, 25
video conferences, 53–54
on a war strategy, 9, 11
on who the enemy was, 23
Russia/Russians, 26, 51, 61, 81, 103, 118, 172. See also Soviet Union, in Afghanistan
Saam, Del, 65, 66
Salehi, Mohammad Zia, 189, 190
Samar, Sima, 33
Schloesser, Jeffrey, 113
Schmidt, Mark, 44
schools, 8, 39, 97, 113, 123, 158, 159, 160, 166, 203, 205, 208
Schroeder, Darryl, 100–101
Schroeder, Gerd, 61
Schultz, Bradd, 57
Sebastian, Christopher, 215–216
Sellers, Terry, 38
Senate Armed Services Committee, 155, 156, 206, 209, 210, 236, 237, 242, 266
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 25, 93
Senate hearings, 110, 153, 155, 202, 203
September 11th terrorist attacks, xi, 135 bin Laden’s death and, 200
going to war following, xii, 3
mission of War in Afghanistan and, 6, 7, 147
Pakistan and, 82
role of Afghans in, 19–20
U.S. officials lying to the media after, xi
withdrawing troops on twentieth anniversary of, 274
sex slaves, 75
Sharp, Walter, 56
Shea-Porter, Carol, 163
Sheberghan, Afghanistan, 118, 121
Sherzai, Gul Agha, 123–124
Shkin. See Firebase Shkin
Sibley, Forrest, 232
SIGAR, xiv. See also Lessons Learned interviews
Skelton, Ike, 155
Slusher, Michael, 61–62, 130, 133
Smiley, Jeffrey, 251
Smith, Jeremy, 11–12, 154
Snukis, Thomas, 45
soccer, 68–69, 158
Somalia, 10, 31, 45, 201, 249
Sopko, John, 204
Soviet Union, in Afghanistan avoiding mistakes of, 4, 9, 35
weapons and, 19, 81
withdrawal, 33, 86, 116, 181
Spann, Johnny Micheal, 118
Special Forces, 11, 22, 23, 44, 67, 74, 84, 96, 100, 118, 119, 148, 160, 172, 174, 224, 233, 271
Special Forces Village, 18
Special Operations Forces, 8, 9, 12, 25, 70, 112, 146, 148, 149, 179, 199–200, 229, 232–233, 249
State Department, xii, 51, 158, 164 Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, 136
central Afghan government and, 37
misleading statistics, 203
nation-building and, 34, 35
negotiations and, 265, 270
Operation River Dance and, 130–131
poppy production/war on opium and, 126, 136, 256, 257
reopening of embassy, 21
security forces training program, 56, 58, 65
strategy reviews, 112
State of the Union Address to Congress (2002), 32–33
statistics Lessons Learned interviews revealing distorted, xv
life expectancy, 228
misleading information about territorial control, 247–248
misleading, under Obama administration, 203–208
Steadman, Andrew, 13
Strengthening Peace Program, 265, 266
Strmecki, Marin, 36, 59–60, 83, 86, 98, 122, 175
Sudan, 19
suicide bombings/attacks, 91–93, 95, 96, 110, 137, 202, 206, 242
Sunni Muslims, 72
Syria, 235
Tajik warlords, 83, 125, 171, 172, 191
Taliban Afghan general on three types of, 101–102
Afghan security forces and, 98, 104, 214, 223
Afghans identifyin
g with, 151
Afghan warlords and, 117
al-Qaeda and, 19–20, 26, 267, 269
assuming destruction of, 47
Bonn Agreement and, 26
control over Kunduz, 233
corruption and, 186, 187
countries holding diplomatic relations with, 82
deaths from war crimes, 118–119
Defense Department contracts and, 187
described by intelligence official, 209
difficulties in identifying, 18–19, 22
diplomatic efforts with, 25–28
Dostum, Abdul Rashid and, 115, 116, 118
growth in, 247
on homosexuality, 75
intelligence reports indicating a danger from, 94–95
Kabul Bank and, 192
Karzai, Hamid and, 120, 172, 174, 179, 181
lack of understanding of, 100–102, 151
made to be the enemy, 20
misleading the public about strength of, 111
nation-building projects and, 161–162, 165, 167, 168
negotiations with, 235–236, 263–268, 269–270, 271–274
objectives for War in Afghanistan and, 7–8
in Operation Medusa, 105–106
opium cultivation/trade and, 129–130, 132–133, 134–135, 137
Pakistan and, 80, 82–83, 85, 86–87, 93, 96, 100
peace talks, 248, 249
poppy farmers joining the, 132–133
reconciliation programs, 268–269
regrouping and resurgence of, 50, 77, 100, 111, 137, 210
rules of engaging with (2016), 236
Rumsfeld on, 5, 54
suicide bombings, 91–93, 202
territories controlled by, 247–248
toppling government of, 3–4
tribal rivalry/feuding, 21
U.S. officials on threat from, 94–96, 97–98, 207
U.S. troops urinating on corpses, 213–214
war crimes by Dostum, 115
warlords compared with, 117, 120
“The Tank,” 243
Tanner, Fred, 147
Task Force Phoenix, 56, 57, 60, 62
Taxell, Nils, 124
tea boys (sex slaves), 75
teachers, 168
televised interviews/speeches, 6, 43–44, 99, 111, 157–158, 181, 201
terrorist groups, 235, 244. See also al-Qaeda; Taliban
Terry, James, 101–102, 220
Thaden, Russell, 126
The Petersberg, Germany, 25
Tilley, Alvin, 74
Tillman, Pat, 99
Toolan, Paul, 96, 100
Tora Bora, Afghanistan, 23–25, 46, 70, 273
The Afghanistan Papers Page 37
