During April, I traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan to thank our troops for their service and to meet with the commander of U.S. and Allied forces, General Stanley McChrystal, as well as President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, and President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan.  As a member of the House Armed Services Committee charged with oversight over our military, I believe it is important to meet with commanders and troops on the ground involved in combat operations to fully understand the situation there.  After visiting, I feel very optimistic about the continued American efforts in Afghanistan and our partnership with Pakistan.    

During my trip, I kept a detailed journal of my meetings and travels so I could keep you better informed.  For the next several days I will post my journal entries from each day online:   

DAY 1:  April 7th, 2010 U.A.E. and Afghanistan (and travel days) 

April 5th 2010 9:25 PM EDT  

I am awaiting our 10:19 pm flight to Dubai from Dulles. I am traveling on a Senate trip with Senators Tom Carper, Tom Udall, Jon Ensign and Scott Brown.  We have met each other and saw Senators Richard Lugar and former Senator Chuck Hagel as we arrived. I have Col. Tom Hawley traveling along with me as the staff member from the House Armed Services Committee. The staffers traveling with Senators are from the Senate Armed Services Committee. I am anxious to get on the plane to begin our trip. There have been a number of significant events in Afghanistan and Pakistan recently that will have an influence on our trip. One was with President Karzai being critical of the U. S in the past Afghan elections especially in light of the recent visit by President Obama and the sense that he has been criticized by the U.S in response to his comments.  There was also some violence in the Peshawar region of Pakistan at the U.S. consulate in the past week which is where we will be traveling the later part of our trip. This region in the Northwest Frontier Province is of critical importance to the U.S. efforts to combat Al Qaeda in the region. 

April 6th 2010 9:32 AM EDT  

My flight has been filled with reading a number of pieces of briefing material. There are many questions I have concerning operations in Afghanistan and the national stability both short and long term in the region. Pakistan is an important part of the regional efforts to disrupt both the Taliban and Al Qaeda. In reviewing some of the testimony before Congress by our military and executive branch leaders there remains much to be done in order to defeat the potential for terrorism coming out of this region. I am anxious to ask questions of President Karzai when we meet with him tomorrow. We will be landing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in the next two hours and we will layover there for a brief period of time and then fly by military air to Kabul, Afghanistan. I look forward to more conversations with my Senate cohorts on this trip and learning their ideas and concerns about U.S. operations and efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan. I have taken some video to account for the different parts of our trip.  

April 6th 2010 10:50 AM EDT  

We are about 15 minutes from touchdown in Dubai. We have had a very uneventful flight which is always the best kind.  We will go directly to customs since we have already received our visas from the United Arab Emirates Embassy in Washington. Just got word that it’s time to turn off the electronic devices. 

April 6th 2010 8:36 PM EDT  

We are leaving the hotel on the way to the airport for our 4.5 hour flight from Dubai to Kabul. We will be meeting with President Karzai today which will be interesting in light of his recent comments about western nations interfering with their elections and the response from President Obama and his press secretary, Robert Gibbs. I will be asking President Karzi to elaborate on his recent comments. I am surprised based on recent events that we will be able to meet with President Karzai. We will also meet with the Afghanistan National Security Chief, as well as some of our constituent service members and civilians who are in Kabul. We will be met at the airport by Ambassador Eikenberry and later we will meet with General McChrystal, Commander, International Security Assistance Force and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan. We will be flying on a C-130 Hercules to Kabul.  

April 7th 2010 2:34 AM EDT  

Ambassador Karl Eikenberry, Ambassador Tony Wayne, and many of the staff from the variety of command missions including USAID, DEA, Department of Homeland Security, State Department, FBI and the various military commands met with us to answer our questions about the current situation in Afghanistan. I asked the Ambassador three questions 1) Are the Provincial Reconstruction Teams properly resourced? 2) Are the Commander’s Emergency Response Program elements properly resourced and do the Combatant Commanders have the flexibility they need in using these funds while assuring that there is no corruption occurring with the local officials in the use of these funds?  3) Is the proper coordination being implemented in the various efforts to create and maintain security, advance development and diplomacy throughout the diverse cultural, regional and ethnic elements in Afghanistan? 

April 7th, 2010 4:45 AM EDT  

We are meeting with General McChrystal, Ambassador Sedwill and Ambassador Riciardone about the current military situation in Afghanistan. Many of the questions centered around President  Karzi’s recent behavior and how the US should react to that including this CODEL.  We asked General McChrystal about how he is dealing with the tribal leaders and making sure that he is doing things within the cultural conditions and that solutions have an Afghan face to them. We asked about the motivating factors behind the Afghan people’s actions and what they are looking for. The most basic element he said is security and infrastructure. Gen McChrystal wants the flexibility in the battlespace his forces operate in. I asked a question about the Afghan National Army leadership and how is it made up, is it effective, how can it be made better.  I also asked if it will create problems with Pakistan since the current composition is one made up of officers that are seen as sympathetic to India which creates problems with Pakistan.  General McChrystal defines success in Afghanistan as the time and space to build and maintain a workable and effective government. 

April 7th  6:05 AM EDT  

We are meeting with the Minister of Defense Wardak, Minister of the Interior Atmar and Minister of Foreign Affairs Rassoul. They were very direct about the challenges they face but are emphatic that the country is in much better shape from a security standpoint than it was in 2005 and prior. The Tajik Prime Minister was very direct about the effort to combat corruption and that there should be zero tolerance for such things. I asked about the concerns of Pakistan about the makeup of the ANA officer corps having a majority of non Pashtuns from the Northern regions of the country. These Northern region leaders are seen as more sympathetic to India which provokes a reaction from Pakistan. All three ministers where emphatic that this is more perceived than real and that they are happy to provide the statistics concerning the regional makeup of their military leaders. 

April 7th 8:40 AM EDT  

The Ministers of Finance, Agriculture, Health, Mines, and the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Advisors provided us a brief on their recent developments. The Finance Minister said that the budgeting process has gone well and that collections are on track.  The agricultural output for the country was up and exports of agricultural products were up. They do need to achieve more exports to India and China, however. They had a good rainfall this year but in order to improve the yields they must invest in irrigation. The Minister of Mines spoke of the great potential they have in mine development and that they are working with companies to come in and develop new mining opportunities and transportation systems to move raw materials. The Minister of Health spoke about high infant mortality rates and high rates of death in pregnant women. These high rates of infant mortality also show up in higher overall rates of child mortality.  There are high rates of chronic malnutrition in children. The donors that supported the efforts to improve public health include USAID and the European Union. More than 600 public health facilities have been constructed in the country. They have worked to make their reporting system more transparent. They are looking to align the public health system with the private providers to improve efficiencies. They are also working to integrate public health systems in a more comprehensive way. 

April 7th 10:23 PM EDT  

We have just finished our security briefing and have donned our flak jackets and are heading to board a C-130 bound for Kandahar, Afghanistan. We have several heavily armed security folks with us - one of the gentlemen is from Vienna, Virginia. I made sure I gave him some Virginia flag pins. He was telling me about his two young sons - what a great family. Many times we forget about the civilians that serve in combat support roles in dangerous areas and also put themselves in harms way for the good of our country. I thanked all of the civilians who work as security contractors or those that work for the various U.S government and non-governmental organizations.  The weather is very seasonable – temperature in the 50s and clear skies. The Kabul area has heavy smog over it which apparently is the result of the residents burning their trash in their home stoves for heat. 

April 7th 11:19 PM EDT  

We are in the air flying over the mountain range that begins the Himalayas.  The mountain tops are snow covered and the area shows no obvious signs of human settlement. This is very rugged country. I finally got a connection to the Afghanistan cell phone network. I had to call Verizon and get them to fix the problem – something about the SIM chip and the phone not having the proper identification – anyways; I am back in communication with the rest of the world. Once we get to Kandahar we will be boarding two Blackhawk helicopters to visits troops down range and some local tribal leaders. Everyone aboard our flight is either reading or sleeping and one is typing away on a computer keyboard – I cannot quite make out who that might be (Ha Ha). Our first stop will be for a briefing on the operations in the region with a focus on the recent efforts in Marjah. We will be briefed by the Regional Command (RC) South Commander.

DAY 2:  April 8th, 2010 – Afghanistan and Pakistan

April 8th 12:42 AM EDT

We have just completed our briefing with senior leadership in Kandahar.  They spoke about our successes in Marjah and how we did not have a large presence there before the offensive. The U.S. forces announced before the offensive that we were going in to remove the Taliban. Many of the senior Taliban leaders left the city leaving behind only middle and lower level leaders. The commander there was very thoughtful and frank about our efforts in Marjah and the challenges we face in Kandahar City.

April 8th 1:58 AM EDT

We have just lifted off from Kandahar in two Blackhawk helicopters with two Apache gunship helicopters escorts. We are expected to arrive in 50 minutes at Argandab which is an agriculturally rich valley that is strategically important to the region.

April 8th 2:26 AM EDT

We have arrived at Argandab and now we are meeting with the commander of the US military forces at the District Governor’s office. We received a briefing from the military and their USAID counterparts on the current operations in the region and how they have changed their efforts in engaging the regional government in advancing security and economic development. We also heard from the District Governor and I asked him what the biggest challenges are that he faces.  He stated that security and the creation of jobs through economic development were his greatest challenges. This is a very rich agricultural region. The Taliban have created havoc in the area which has disturbed the efforts to further develop agriculture

April 8th 5:24 AM EDT

We have arrived at a Forward Operating Base in Afghanistan.  The base commander met us and then we went to receive a brief from a battalion commander who is in charge of training parts of the Afghanistan National Army and the Afghanistan National Police. We observed an active training exercise with the Afghan forces learning how to do a secure entry into a building. The Afghan forces were very professional and, in our conversation through the interpreter with them, they were very enthusiastic and eager to learn and perform their mission.

April 8th 6:45 AM EDT

We arrived back in Kandahar by Blackhawk helicopter and have boarded a C-130 to fly to Islamabad. We will arrive in about an hour and will then check into the Marriott Hotel. This is the hotel that was bombed by terrorists in 2008. We have been assured that the hotel is very safe and upon arrival by escort from the Pakistani Police I felt very comfortable being at the hotel.

April 8th 12:02 PM EDT

We are meeting with Ambassador Patterson in her office at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad Pakistan.  We are receiving a brief on the current conditions in the country and where the threats exist with the Taliban.  The relationship between President Zhardari and General Khayani was discussed.  The effort that happened yesterday in the Pakastani parliament that redistributed presidential power is seen as a victory by both the Parliament and the President. 

April 8th 12:48 PM EDT

We are now meeting with the Embassy team.  They are briefing us on the training efforts for the Pakistani military. The United States has personnel in Pakistan in training but not in operations. We also provide medical assistance to both civilian and military. There is some resistance to the U.S. military presence in Pakistan, though there is an appreciation of the help the U.S. provides.  The Pakistan-India potential for trade is unlimited and can be an economic driver for Pakistan but many of the issues we have spoken about relate back to the distrust and challenged relationship and jealousies between Pakistan and India.  There is a big issue with the passage of the 18th amendment to the Pakistani constitution which would take some power from the President and give it to the Prime Minister and the legislature.  The President and Prime Minister are of the same political party but different factions within the party. 

April 8th 1:53 PM EDT

We are being briefed by General Nagata on their current military efforts in Pakistan.  He is telling us about how we are enabling the Pakistani military to pursue a counterinsurgency effort against the Taliban. There is a sustained military engagement with the Taliban.  Pakistan has been pursuing this now for 11 months with 2,000 members of the Pakistan military killed in action.  For the areas that are cleared, Pakistan must sustain, hold and build operational security.  The outcome is not certain because it is hard to maintain security and to win the hearts and minds of folks, so they will stay and reconstruct, maintain security, and keep the Taliban out.  

April 8th 4:08 PM EDT

We are meeting with General Khayani and his staff.  Senator Carper is providing opening remarks about how much we value the sacrifice that Pakistan has made in fighting the Taliban.  General Khayani stressed that we must maintain the momentum of the effort in fighting the Taliban.  This will take effort and cooperation he said and he wants the help of the U.S. to maintain the momentum.  He is afraid that if the momentum is broken it will be hard to recover.  Senator Ensign pointed out that the interests of the U.S. and Pakistan are common – to defeat the Pakistani and Afghani Taliban.  He said that we are committed to being successful in Afghanistan and that we are committed to staying the course.  General Khayani agreed that we have these interests in common and the objective is the same.  The only differences may be how to achieve these objectives for a stable Afghanistan.  He stressed that we must keep going in the right direction and continue the momentum in these efforts.  I asked the General that in light of his emphasis on taking the right direction, building and then maintaining momentum, what can the U.S. do to assist Pakistan in building and maintaining the momentum?  He answered that we must pursue a strategy to secure the areas of the country with a Taliban presence and then to implement a strategy to maintain order.  This concept of hold and build is critical he said.  He also pointed out that people that live in these regions have to be part of the solution, cannot tolerate the Taliban, and must cooperate with the government and military to keep the Taliban out.  This has been a great meeting to be able to understand that General Khayani has the proper overall view in what a successful strategy would look like.  The question then becomes are there the resources and long term commitment to achieve his strategy?  He seems to say that Pakistan is willing to make the commitment to see this strategy through.

April 8th 5:55 PM EDT

We are meeting with President Zhardari and he is stating that Pakistan has not had this kind of recent positive attention and he believes that this is a great opportunity.  He stated that the progress between the two countries should be the priority of our time. The opportunity of the time is to address the threats from Al Qaeda and subsequently the Taliban.  The president spoke of overcoming the dictatorial mindset and having the support of the country to pursue a power sharing change in the Constitution.  The president wants to influence the mindset in America about helping Pakistan. My introductory comments to President Zhardari – “Thank you for the country’s efforts in fighting terrorism- we are here to support these efforts and we are committed to the long term efforts to combat terrorism.  Thank you for the country’s sacrifice in the resources and for the blood shed by your countrymen.”  I will ask about how, in addition to the trade agreements you spoke about, we can help your efforts to advance the economy and the growth of jobs progress, including diplomatic efforts by the U.S.  We all know that we must have security in order to create economic opportunity so our collective commitment to security is critical to the success of both countries.  The president said that the U.S. could help by asking the World Bank to provide friendlier terms for loans to Pakistan also to ask India to open up trade opportunities for Pakistan.

April 8th 7:32 PM EDT

We are now meeting with the Prime Minister.  He spoke to us about the recent amendment to the constitution of Pakistan to share powers with the President, Prime Minister, and the parliament.  He wants to strengthen the relationship with the U.S. and have it go beyond the effort to combat terrorism.  He said that the country is all on the same page in fighting terrorism and extremism; that is the government, military and the citizens.  The economic prosperity of Pakistan and Afghanistan he sees as intertwined and has met with President Karzai to enhance that effort. The delegation then made a number of comments to include that the U.S. is committed to a healthy long term friendship and that we are committed to the longevity of the relationship.  It was pointed out that there is a significant challenge ahead both in creating security in Pakistan and the region and in defeating terrorism and extremism and working to enhance the partnerships with countries in the region.  The Prime Minister wants to win the hearts and minds of the people so that they can enjoy long term success in combating the threats from the Taliban and Al Qaeda.  The youth are going to the streets in some areas because of the lack of electricity, especially in rural areas.  Sixty-five percent of the population is young people and there are challenges the government faces; these young people that do not have opportunities will end up in schools that teach jihadism and extremism.  Thirty-five percent of the population is below the poverty line so there must be hope for them to achieve, and the opportunity to do so for the future, which allows them to avoid indoctrination by extremists.  The Finance Minister pointed out that Pakistan is a developing country and it has its share of problems.  The opportunity for dialogue with other countries including the U.S. to enhance the economic development efforts will allow the country to grow.  They are looking at covering past deficits brought on by developing the system of electricity delivery and energy development.  I asked that, in light of his comments about the future dialogue with India and needing to enhance the relationship with Afghanistan, what are the greatest potential opportunities between the countries as he pursues these efforts?  With Afghanistan, he noted that there is a great opportunity to have a greater effort in intelligence gathering and sharing.  He also stated that there is an opportunity for joint military operations in dealing with the Taliban and Al Qaeda.  He answered by saying that the efforts to combat terrorism and extremism has the greatest opportunity for breakthroughs between both India and Afghanistan.

Day 3:  April 9th, 2010 – Pakistan

April 9th  11:34 PM

We have left the Hotel to arrive at the Heliport at the Islamabad Sports Complex. We boarded two Huey helicopters given to the Pakistani Army by the United States.  These helicopters are at least 35 years old.  I was cautious about flying on these aircraft but did so anyway.  We had a 45 minute flight to Jolazai refugee camp.  There are over 160,000 people in the refugee camp that are living in tents.  All of the folks in this camp have been displaced by the conflict with the Taliban. Most of the refugees came from the Northwest Frontier Province, some from the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), and a few from Baluchistan.  Most all of the folks in the camp were from various tribes in this region of the country.  The conditions in the camp were surprisingly good.  We saw very little trash and no water or wastes in the streets.  They have a very orderly system of water supply distribution, waste disposal, and food distribution.  

We visited the schools and health clinics both of which were run exceptionally well.  I was surprised that of the 30,000 school aged children in the camp, only 13,000 of them attended school.  We asked why this was so and were told that much of it is cultural with some tribes seeing their children as being more useful in helping out the family gathering firewood and other chores. They are working to convince more of the families to send their children to school.  In many parts of the region school is not emphasized, especially for girls.  The percentage of girls in Pakistan receiving education is very low and this was also reflected in the schools in the camp. We also went to the health clinics which had doctors providing care. We asked what was the most common ailment and the doctors stated that it was gastrointestinal disease.  There is a significant effort to immunize children for communicable diseases so there is very little if any communicable disease problems for which one can be immunized in camp.

There is an Army hospital also in the camp and they provide all of the advance treatment care. They can also stabilize patients who are suffering from traumatic injury for transport to a hospital in the region.  The Army, along with the Police forces, provide security within the camp and around the borders of the camp.  We met with the commanding General of the regional Army force that provides security in the camp and the region.  There, we learned about the large number of Pakistani troops deployed to the region, the number of incidents the Army had (which are surprisingly few) and the challenges they face both in new folks coming to the camp and in them helping folks resettle back into the regions they came from. 

They also spoke of the resources they receive from the U.S. and the United Nations to feed folks and provide basic needs and shelter.  They also provide basic living expenses to folks via ATM cards – yes ATM cards!  I could not believe that this would be effective but the Bank of Pakistan works with them to issue VISA ATM cards.  The folks then have to travel to a bank to get the money and this cuts out on fraud, theft and abuse of funds.  

We also met with all of the tribal elders in camp, which is the equivalent to a Sherpa in other regions of the country.  We heard their issues through an interpreter.  One of the issues that stuck out for me is the complaint that they want to return to their homes but when they do the violence has not stopped so they end up back in the refugee camps.  Also, the money provided for living expenses through the ATM cards has run out and there is discontent as some folks have received help and others have not.  We have been assured by the Pakistani Army that they will be receiving more money to provide the ATM cards.  The ATM cards come with the equivalent of 340 U.S. dollars per month per family and they have to apply and receive a national ID card that has their biometric information on it.  They also cannot use the ATM card without their National ID which virtually eliminates fraud.  The cards are recharged with dollars each month for as long as they are in the camp.  They have a very rigid system in tracking who comes in and who leaves these camps.  We then left the briefing from the Pakistan Army and boarded the helicopters to fly to the Frontier Corps training installation.

Day 4:  April 10th, 2010 – Pakistan

April 10th 2:40 AM

We boarded the two Huey helicopters for a 30 minute flight to the training facility for the Frontier Scouts, which is part of the Pakistani Army.  Since this region is made up of tribes that have occupied the area for centuries, the Frontier Scouts recruit their soldiers from the tribes.  They have a very high retention rate because they recruit from the population they are trying to secure.  All of their recruits must come with a recommendation from the tribal chief.  This assures that they get the best recruits since the reputation of the tribal chief is at risk if they do not recommend folks that will not be successful.  The reputation of the tribal chiefs is a very important thing in the tradition of the tribes so this system has worked out well for the Frontier Scouts and the tribes. The Frontier Scouts get top recruits and the tribal leaders get Frontier Scouts that secure their tribal regions that come from the tribes.   

We met with General Tarik Kahn, Commander of the Frontier Scouts.  General Kahn briefed us on the efforts of the Scouts in the tribal region of the Northwest Frontier Province.  They have suffered a number of casualties in their efforts to combat the Taliban.  The delegation recognized the sacrifice being made in resources and in lives by the Frontier Scouts.  We had a number of training demonstrations done for us by the Scout units.  After lunch, we went outside to a ceremony where they had local musicians playing to recognize the partnership between the Frontier Scouts and the U.S., and then we had a group picture taken.  It was then off to board the two Huey helicopters that had just come back from refueling.  We then flew for about an hour and a half back to Islamabad.

Our military aircraft that we were supposed to fly on to Dubai to catch a commercial flight home broke down and could not be repaired in time for us to catch our flight in Dubai so we had to reschedule our travel arrangements.  The new schedule will keep us in Islamabad until 2:00am Sunday morning.

April 10th 11:00 AM

We have arrived at the Islamabad airport for a flight to Doha, Qatar, and from there we will then fly from Doha to Dulles Airport.  I am on the Doha to Dulles flight now and it has also been a great flight- we are flying over Nova Scotia as I type.  I am looking forward to getting home.  It will be great to see Kathryn and the dogs (my four labs and a hound dog).

Day 5:  April 11th, 2010 – Retuning Home!

April 11th 3:33 PM

We have landed at Washington Dulles.  I have said goodbye to all of the folks on the CODEL-Senators and staff.  What A great trip.  I told them how thoroughly I enjoyed the trip and their company.  Senators Carper, Ensign, Udall and Scott are true gentlemen and statesman.  Their states are extraordinarily represented in the U.S. Senate.

My observations about this CODEL are that there is much less partisanship with these types of interactions and a great exchange of ideas. The dynamic with the group was great – we all got along extraordinarily well.  We all thoroughly enjoyed the trip and learned a lot.  I look forward to traveling again to areas where our men and women in uniform are stationed.  I could not be more proud of our brave men and women who are serving our nation every day overseas.  They all display a continued high level of patriotism and morale that makes me proud to be an American.

I know that some folks will question such trips but I can assure folks that the things we learn from interactions with world leaders, U.S. military leaders, our men and women in uniform and civilian personal and the citizens of the foreign countries we visit are invaluable.  We could not gain this understanding and interaction by any other means.  The knowledge we gain from these visits make us better decision makers and leaders.