Afghanistan: More Hill Testimony
December 9th, 2009 by Jason
General McChrystal and Ambassador Eikenberry testified about the new Afghan strategy before the Armed Service Committees in both the House and Senate yesterday. They will continue their testimony on the Hill both today and tomorrow.
According to Chris Good at The Atlantic, General McChrystal’s prediction of success in Afghanistan was couched in “a healthy amount of humility.” McChrystal argued that a combination of the resolve of the Afghans, the unpopularity of the Taliban, the evidence of recent ISAF success in providing better security and goverannce, and the Afghan support for the ISAF mission all portend the potential for success. But Dana Miliband notes that McChrystal managed a “careful linguistic dance” to avoid uttering the actual word victory, defining success instead as the ability for the Afghans to win for themselves.
Anatol Lieven and Maleeha Lodhi in The New York Times don’t see much of a chance for success at all. They therefore argue “it is essential that the U.S. plan incorporate a political strategy aimed at Afghan national reconciliation - and that plan should involve negotiations with the Taliban.” Azeem Ibrahim also calls for negotiations with the Taliban and allow “moderate elements of the Taliban to share power in a democratic Afghan system.”
After a recent trip to Afghanistan, Michael Shank contends “Afghans are simply asking for an Afghan-centered approach, one that puts Afghans at the fore of every peace and security effort, one that builds sustainable Afghan state and local capacity, and one that sets new precedents for justice and accountability.” Such is the plan outlined by General McChrystal. However, Fred Kaplan pounces on McChrystal’s comment that “there is much in Afghanistan that I do not understand” and argues for the necessity of understanding the local society and culture for COIN to be effective. Additionally,which Andrew McCarhty at NRO critiques, “General McChrystal would employ COIN tactics in the course of a broader nation-building scheme. It is the nation-building to which I object. It is premature: Nation-building, if we should do it at all, should follow the enemy’s defeat.” He goes on to defend the original Bush Doctrine formulation “before it was modified by the ‘forward march of freedom’ rhetoric that has nothing to do with American national security.”
Patrick Barry also questions whether the U.S. is nation-building or not, focusing on McChrystal’s warning against “thinking of local militias as a better security off-ramp than the Afghan army.” He also wonders why Pakistan is not received sufficient attentiongiven that, per McChrystal’s testimony, our goal in Afghanistan is to primarily fight Al Qaeda. Laura Rozen explores how the Obama administration has both de-emphasized the faltering leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari while also offering a mixture of sticks and carrots to the Pakistani military to ramp up efforts against Islamist militants and especially the Afghan Taliban.
In another post, Rozen reports that a recent memo from retired General Barry McCaffrey suggests “the international civilian agency surgewill essentially not happen […] Afghanistan over the next 2-3 years will be simply too dangerous for most civil agencies.” Rozen contends such analysis “bolsters chatter that the U.S. military leadership may not be ready to put aside tensions with its civilian counterparts,” as fleshed out by this recent New York Times article on the relationship between General McChrystal and Ambassador Eikenberry. Nonetheless, Jen DiMascio of Politico reports that the pair “sought to present a unified front” yesterday on the Hill.
Posted in Afghanistan, Committee Meetings, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Military, Pakistan, Taliban, Terrorism, US foreign policy, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Michael Posner Confirmation Hearing
July 29th, 2009 by Max
Michael H. Posner, President of Human Rights First, testified Tuesday before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations to be confirmed as Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. In his testimony, Posner asserted that the framework put forth by President Obama in his Cairo speech–in which it was asserted that freedom of speech, rule of law, equal administration of justice, transparent justice and freedom were not just American ideals, but human rights to be supported everywhere–”can and should guide U.S. policies everywhere in the world.”
Posner stated, “If confirmed, I will view my role as being a principle advocate for robust human rights and democracy policies within the Government. It will be my job to make the best case possible for why these interests are important and why adherence to these principles will advance the long term national interests of the United States.”
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Human Rights, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: 2009 Supplemental War Bill
May 7th, 2009 by Eoghan
The House Appropriations Committee met today to consider the 2009 supplemental bill to provide funds for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, aid to Pakistan, and other purposes. Chairman David Obey (D-WI) said he was “extremely dubious” that the Obama administration’s strategy in Afghanistan would succeed, but that he was willing to give them one year to try it out.
For POMED’s notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings | Comment »
Petraeus/Crocker Testimony Day 1 Roundup
April 9th, 2008 by Stephen
The editors of the Small Wars Journal blog have a comprehensive roundup of commentary on yesterday’s two Senate hearings with General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker. Included are links to a few dozen articles, analyses, reactions, and live-blogging from the two hearings. Petraeus and Crocker are now speaking before the House Armed Services Committee, and will appear before the House Committee on Foreign Afffairs this afternoon. We’ll have further details on today’s hearings later on.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Iraq | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on Iraq in 2012
April 3rd, 2008 by Sharlina
On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing entitled, “Iraq 2012: What Can it Look Like, How do We Get There?” Committee Chairman Senator Joseph R. Biden presided over the hearing and gave opening remarks, in addition to Chairman Senator Dick Lugar’s opening remarks.
The panel of witnesses included Professor Carole O’Leary, Program Director, Scholar in Residence, Center for Global Peace, American University, Dr. Dawn Brancati, Fellow, Institute of Quantitative Social Studies, Harvard University, The Honorable Carlos Pascual, Vice President, Director of Foreign Policy, Brookings Institution, Dr. F. Gregory Gause, III, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Vermont, and Dr. Terrence K. Kelly, Senior Operations Researcher, RAND Corporation.
For full POMED notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Iraq, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on International Relations Budget for FY 2009
February 15th, 2008 by Nicolas
On Wednesday, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing on the International Relations Budget for Fiscal Year 2009. The witness was The Honorable Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State. The hearing was presided over by Acting Chairman Rep. Howard Berman. Secretary Rice was questioned by various members of the committee on a variety of foreign issues.
For POMED’s full notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings | Comment »
POMED Notes: Senate Examination of Ambassador Nominees
February 7th, 2008 by Nicolas
On Monday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing for appointment of three ambassadors. The ambassadors to be were the Honorable Margaret Scobey for the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Honorable James F. Moriarty for the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, and Ms. Deborah K. Jones for the State of Kuwait.
For POMED’s full notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Egypt, Kuwait | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on Afghanistan
February 1st, 2008 by Sharlina
On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing entitled, “Afghanistan: A Plan to Turn the Tide?”
In Panel I, Ambassador Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State and Ambassador David T. Johnson, Assistant Secretary, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, U.S. Department of State testified at the hearing. The second panel’s witnesses were comprised of General James L. Jones, Jr., USMC (Ret.), Former Commander, European Command and Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Thomas Pickering, Former Under Secretary for Political Affairs, U.S. Department of State, and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, Former U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations. Committee Chairman Senator Joseph R. Biden presided over the hearing.
For full POMED notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Afghanistan, Committee Meetings, Events, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on Pakistani Elections (Part II)
January 31st, 2008 by Sharlina
On Tuesday, the Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing entitled, “Pakistani Elections: Will They Be Free and Fair or Fundamentally Flawed (Part II).” The hearing served as a follow-up to Chairman Tierney’s December 20, 2007 hearing on the Pakistani elections that featured, among others, former Senate Majority Leader Thomas A. Daschle.
Ambassador Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, U.S. Department of State, testified at the hearing. Subcommittee Chairman Rep. John F. Tierney presided over the hearing.
For full POMED notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Elections, Events, Pakistan | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on U.S. Foreign Assistance Aid
January 24th, 2008 by Nicolas
Yesterday the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee held a hearing on U.S. Foreign Assistance aimed to discuss reform on how aid is distributed and the nature of the assistance projects priority should be given to.
Witnesses included Mary Bush, former Chairman, HELP Commission, Leo Hindrey, former Vice Chairman, HELP Commission, Lael Brainard, Vice President and Director, Global Economy and Development, Brookings Institute, and George Rupp, CEO and President, International Rescue Committee; CSIS Commission on Smart Power.For full POMED notes click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Foreign Aid | Comment »
POMED Notes: Hearing on Censorship in Arab Media
January 22nd, 2008 by Sharlina
Today the Subcommittee on Middle East and South Asia of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing entitled, “That which is not obligatory is prohibited: Censorship and Incitement in the Arab World.” The hearing focused on the various progress, or lack thereof, of the freedom of the press across the region.
Joel Campagna of Committee to Protect Journalists, Richard Eisendorf of Freedom House, and Kenneth Jacobson of the Anti-Defamation League testified at the hearing. Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Gary Ackerman presided over the hearing.
For full POMED notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Human Rights, Middle Eastern Media | Comment »
POMED NOTES: Hearing on US - Pakistan Relations
January 18th, 2008 by Kent
On Wednesday, the Subcommittee on Middle East and South Asia of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing on the future of Pakistan after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto last month. The hearing focused on how the United States should handle relations with the country in the midst of the political turmoil over the February parliamentary elections.
C. Christine Fair, Ph.D of RAND Corporation, Ashley J. Tellis, Ph.D. of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Lisa Curtis of The Heritage Foundation testified at the hearing. Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Gary Ackerman presided over the hearing.
For full POMED notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Pakistan, US foreign policy | Comment »
POMED Notes: Foreign Affairs Hearing about Iraq
December 20th, 2007 by Celest
Yesterday, the International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing to investigate if Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s request for an extension of the UN mandate for coalition in forces in Iraq without the approval of the Iraqi Parliament was unconstitutional under the Iraqi Constitution. This is debatable because the Iraqi Constitution says that the Iraqi Parliament must approve all international treaties and agreements, and it is questionable if extending the UN mandate in Iraq qualifies as an international agreement.
The witnesses were Michael Rubin, Ph.D., Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research; Issam Michael Saliba, Esq., Senior Foreign Law Specialist, Middle East and North Africa, Law Library of Congress; Kenneth Katzman, Ph.D. Specialist in Middle East Affairs, Foreign Affairs, Defense and Trade Division, Congressional Research Service; and Raed Jarrar, Iraq Consultant, Middle East Peace Building Program, American Friends Service Committee. Chairman Bill Delahunt (D-MA) and Ranking Member Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) both made opening statements.
The hearing was not able to conclusively say if Maliki’s actions were unconstitutional as the witnesses were split on if this was actually the case. The Q&A session covered many topics including the representativeness of Iraq’s electoral system and how Iraq’s democracy is evolving.
For POMED’s full notes, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Democracy Promotion, Iraq, US foreign policy, United Nations | Comment »
David Lesch’s Testimony on Syria
November 13th, 2007 by Celest
Joshua Landis provides a transcript of David Lesch’s oral testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Subcommittee on the Near East on November 8, 2007. POMED’s notes from the hearing were posted last week.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Lebanon, Syria | Comment »
POMED Notes: Senate Foreign Relations Hearing on Syria
November 9th, 2007 by Celest
Yesterday the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing entitled “Syria: Options and Implications for Lebanon and the Region.” Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) made an opening statement. Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) submitted an opening statement to the record.
Witnesses were: the Honorable C. David Welch, Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs, Department of State, Washington, DC; Mr. Robert Malley, Middle East and North Africa Program Director, International Crisis Group, Washington, DC; Dr. David W. Lesch, Professor of Middle East History, Trinity University, San Antonio, TX; and Mr. Emile el-Hokayem, Research Fellow, Southwest Asia/Gulf Program, The Henry L. Stimson Center, Washington, DC.
For POMED’s notes, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Lebanon, Syria | Comment »
Hearing: The State Department and the Iraq War
October 26th, 2007 by Celest
On Thursday morning the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing to question Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice about the State Department’s performance in Iraq, including fighting corruption and the use of private security companies. Questions focuses on three main topics: corruption in the Iraqi government, problems in the State Department, and the use and oversight of private security companies. Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-CA) made opening remarks.
For POMED’s notes, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Iraq, Reform | Comment »
POMED NOTES: Hearing on US Policy in the Middle East with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
October 25th, 2007 by Amanda
Yesterday, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing featuring testimony from the Honorable Condoleeza Rice on US policy in the Middle East. Chairman Lantos started the hearing by giving an opening statement, which can be viewed here. After, members of the committee were allowed to pose questions to Secretary Rice.
For POMED’s notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, US politics | Comment »
POMED NOTES: Hearing on Iran Sanctions and Regional Security
October 24th, 2007 by Sean
Yesterday, the House Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia held a hearing entitled “Iran Sanctions and Regional Security,” featuring testimony from Brooking’s Philip Gordon and Ilan Berman of the American Foreign Policy Council. Introductory remarks were made by committee chairman Gary Ackerman (D-NY).
Philip Gordon argued that “economic development is a higher priority for the Iranian public” than their country’s nuclear program, while Ilan Berman recommended using targeted international sanctions and pressure on Iran’s gasoline imports as part of a “serious economic warfare strategy” to convince Iran that the costs of a nuclear capability outweigh the benefits.
A lively question and answer session followed, focusing on Iran’s oil refining capability, U.S. divestment legislation, the possibility of a multilateral military strike against Iran, as well as Iran’s growing middle class and internal opposition to the regime.
For POMED’s notes on the hearing, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Iran | Comment »
POMED Notes: Markup in Foreign Affairs Committee
October 23rd, 2007 by Celest
This morning the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a markup for several bills including H.R.2332, Syria Accountability & Liberation Act, & H.Res.435, expressing concern for Iran’s threatening behavior in Latin America.
Very few committee members commented on either bill. Discussion of H.R.2332 focused mainly on whether it should include an amendment encouraging or requiring dialog with Syrian leaders. Comments about H.Res.435 were in support of the resolution and discussed ways Iran is influencing Latin America.
For POMED’s notes, click here.
Posted in Committee Meetings, Iran, Syria | Comment »
Hearing: Rendition to Torture: The Case of Maher Arar
October 19th, 2007 by Celest
Yesterday the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight and the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties held a joint hearing entitled “Rendition to Torture: The Case of Maher Arar.” Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-MA), Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), and Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) made opening statements.
Maher Arar testified via videoconference about what happened to him, along with Kent Roach, Esq., Prichard-Wilson Chair, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, who was involved in the Canadian inquiry into the situation. Other witnesses were: Daniel Benjamin, Director, Center on the United States and Europe, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, The Brookings Institution; David D. Cole, Esq., Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center; Frederick P. Hitz, Esq., Lecturer and Senior Fellow, Center for National Security Law, University of Virginia School of Law; and Michael John Garcia, Esq., Legislative Attorney, American Law Division, Congressional Research Service.
The hearing considered the case of Maher Arar who was rendered to Syria as a suspected terrorist, which later proved to be untrue. During the second portion of the hearing, the final four witnesses testified about the legality of extraordinary rendition generally and in the case of Maher Arar specifically.
All the representatives present expressed their apologies to Mr. Arar for the mistakes made in his case. Many of the representatives, including Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-MO), Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), expressed concern that extraordinary rendition harms the United States’ reputation. Rep. Conyers said it undermines out reputation as standard bearers of human rights. Rep. Delahunt said it “betrays our core values” that set us apart and are inherent in democracy. When asked how extraordinary rendition harms US credibility, Mr. Arar replied, when the US behaves this way, “how can they believe that the US would help them establish a democracy?”
Posted in Committee Meetings, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Human Rights | Comment »
