Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Delivers Remarks at the Council On Foreign Relations On U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan

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Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Delivers Remarks at the Council On Foreign Relations On U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan

SEN. CARL LEVIN, D-MICH., DELIVERS REMARKS AT THE COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS ON U.S. STRATEGY IN AFGHANISTAN

OCTOBER 1, 2010

SPEAKERS: SEN. CARL LEVIN, D-MICH.

THOM SHANKER, NEW YORK TIMES PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT

[*] (JOINED IN PROGRESS) SHANKER: ...their commitment, their expertise, their sacrifice. As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, he's among the most respected voices on military affairs, not just in the Congress or his party, but in the nation and around the world. And it's a great honor for me and the council today to turn the floor over to Senator Carl Levin.

LEVIN: Well, thank you, Thom, for a really nice introduction. Some of the introductions I get are very long and not usually as meaningful to me as that one was.

Thanks to the council for inviting me to speak to you all today, and again, thanks to Thom for moderating here.

The council plays an invaluable role in providing a forum for discussing some of the most difficult and important issues that our nation faces. And I hope I can contribute to that mission in some small way today.

I'd like to talk this morning about the United States' strategy in Afghanistan, how it's working, and what I believe is a key to its success. There were two main elements to the strategy that the president announced at West Point in December. First, he called for a surge of 30,000 U.S. troops, the last of which are just now arriving in Afghanistan, to seize the initiative and to build the capacity of the Afghan security forces. The strategy is to clear, hold, build, and transfer. With transfer through strengthened Afghan security forces being the essential addition to the familiar clear, hold, and build.

Second, the president announced that after 18 months beginning in July of 2011, we will begin to reduce U.S. forces in Afghanistan and accelerate a transfer of responsibilities to the Afghan government.

So how's it going? The picture is very mixed. There's been a - there's been significant progress in securing previously Taliban-held areas, and in killing or capturing insurgent leaders. But the overall security situation is still troubling, and e...

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