Now that the November 7th run-off election in Afghanistan has been canceled and Hamid Karzai announced the official winner of the August 20th election, President Obama should end the uncertainty surrounding the future of U.S. engagement in the region and announce a strategy for moving forward in Afghanistan. The ongoing public debate about Afghanistan has already cost the U.S. credibility with its NATO allies and is confusing our regional partners who are starting to hedge their bets and plan for a decreased U.S. commitment to the region. As well-known Pakistan …
The results of the investigations of voter fraud by the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) have become critically important in determining the outcome of the August 20 Afghan election. The Afghan people will not be satisfied with the electoral process until the work of the ECC is completed, which could take several more weeks. A Karzai victory amidst unresolved allegations of vote tampering would leave his new government on shaky ground and damage the credibility of the coalition forces, which would be perceived as supporting a sham election. Commentators are increasingly …
