[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1691-E1692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

CORRESPONDENCE WITH DEFENSE SECRETARY PANETTA ON THE AFGHANISTAN/
PAKISTAN STUDY GROUP

______

HON. FRANK R. WOLF

of virginia

in the house of representatives

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I submit my correspondence with the
administration on my call for an Afghanistan/Pakistan Study Group. My
letters to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta of July 19, 2011; August 1,
2011; and August 8, 2011 follow:

House of Representatives,

July 19, 2011.
Hon. Leon Panetta,
Secretary of Defense,
The Pentagon, Washington, DC.
Dear Leon: I write today concerning the U.S. mission in
Afghanistan and Pakistan. My amendment, which gives the
Secretary of Defense the authority to establish an
Afghanistan/Pakistan (Af/Pak) Study Group, was included in
the House-passed FY 2012 Defense Appropriations bill. I
pressed for the amendment because I believe fresh eyes are
needed now to examine the situation on the ground and the
overall U.S. mission.
I envision the Af/Pak Study Group being modeled after the
Iraq Study Group (ISG). Both you and your predecessor Bob
Gates served on the ISG and know better than most the
benefits it provided after three years of fighting in Iraq.
Now that the U.S. is in its 10th year in Afghanistan, I
believe a similar effort is necessary.
Before he was appointed as ambassador to Afghanistan, Ryan
Crocker supported creating an Af/Pak Study Group, along with
Ambassador Ronald Neumann and Jim Dobbins from the RAND
Corporation. American men and women are fighting and dying in
Afghanistan. If we are asking them to put their lives on the
line daily, I believe we have an obligation to provide an
independent evaluation of the U.S. mission. We owe our
military forces nothing less.
I do not have the answers. But as you know, there is a
movement building in Congress in favor of pulling troops out
of Afghanistan. An amendment offered by Rep. Jim McGovern
earlier this year to the National Defense Authorization Act
to accelerate U.S. departure from Afghanistan was narrowly
defeated 204-215. If six members had changed their vote, the
amendment would have passed. I have talked to several members
who voted against the McGovern amendment who are seriously
concerned about the war in Afghanistan and could change their
vote if the situation on the ground does not improve rapidly.
I also believe it is critical that Afghanistan be examined
in tandem with the facts on the ground in Pakistan. It is
clear that in order to be successful in Afghanistan, we must
have a clear understanding of how Pakistan is influencing
U.S. operations. Just look at the recent news from the
region. Hamid Karzai's half-brother was murdered and his
funeral bombed, Karai advisor Jan Mohammed Kahn was murdered,
and militants attacked and laid siege to the Intercontinental
Hotel in Kabul. The enclosed article printed recently in the
Washington Post states, ``. . . optimism and energy vanished
long ago, gradually replaced by cynicism and fear. The
trappings of democracy remained in place . . . but the
politics of ethnic dog fights, tribal feuds and personal
patronage continued to prevail.''
The men and women serving in Afghanistan deserve to have
fresh eyes look at this region as soon as possible. With
House passage of the A/Pak amendment, I ask that you use your
authority as secretary and move quickly to create this study
group. I have discussed my amendment with John Hamre at the
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and he
has offered to coordinate the group with professionals with a
wide range of expertise.
I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you to
discuss this important initiative and look forward to working
with you to ensure we are successful in Afghanistan and
Pakistan.
Best wishes.
Sincerely,
Frank R. Wolf,
Member of Congress.
____

House of Representatives,

August 2, 2011.
Hon. Leon Panetta,
Secretary of Defense,
The Pentagon, Washington, DC.
Dear Leon: I want to follow up on my previous letter
regarding Afghanistan policy and bring to your attention a
book I am reading, The Wars in Afghanistan, discussed in the
enclosed Washington Post book review. Its author, Ambassador
Peter Tomsen, is a veteran of the Foreign Service and has an
impressive background in the South Asia region. If you have
not read his book, I highly recommend it to you. The Post
review concludes: ``This long overdue work. . .is the most
authoritative account yet of Afghanistan's wars over the last
30 years and should be essential reading for those wishing to
forge a way forward without repeating the mistakes of the
past.''
After three years of the Iraq war, the formation of the
Iraq Study Group garnered the support of Secretary Rumsfeld,
Secretary Rice, and Joint Chiefs General Pace. Our military
men land women have been putting their lives on the line in
Afghanistan every day for 10 years, seven years longer than
when the decision was made to create the ISG to provide the
independent assessment needed for U.S. policy in Iraq. I
believe we owe it to our brave soldiers to focus now with
fresh eyes on the target in Afghanistan.
I have spoken with Ambassador Tomsen about a framework for
moving forward in Afghanistan, and he would be happy to meet
with you and your team to discuss his breadth of experience
there. I urge you to take him up on his offer.
Best wishes.
Sincerely,
Frank R. Wolf,
Member of Congress.
____

House of Representatives,

August 8, 2011.
Hon. Leon Panetta,
Secretary of Defense,
The Pentagon, Washington, DC.
Dear Leon: I want to draw your attention to the enclosed
letter I received from retired Marine Corps General Charles
Krulak regarding an Afghanistan/Pakistan (Af/Pak) Study
Group.
General Krulak makes an important point that we cannot be
successful in Afghanistan if we do not address the ongoing
tensions and frequent hostilities between Pakistan and India.
I again ask you to take the language in the FY 2012 Defense
Appropriations bill and use your authority to create the Af/
Pak Study Group. Every day we delay is another missed
opportunity to successfully address U.S. policy in South
Asia.
Thank you for your time and I look forward to meeting with
you in the near future to discuss this important issue.
Best wishes,
Sincerely,
Frank R. Wolf,
Member of Congress.
____

Birmingham-Southern College,

Birmingham, AL, July 25, 2011.
Hon. Frank R. Wolf,
Cannon House Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Congressman Wolf: Thank you so much for your letter of
July, 20, 2011 forwarding me your letter to Secretary
Panetta. You asked for my thoughts on the proposed Af/Pak
Study Group and here they are:
I think you are spot on! It should be obvious to everyone
concerned that the time has come to do a professional
evaluation of the current policy in the region. When I
mention ``region'', I believe it is important to include
India. At the end of the day, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India
are inextricably linked . . . you cannot establish policies
in a stove pipe manner. The Study Group will immediately
recognize that fact and accommodate it.
It is important to understand that conflict occurs at three
levels . . . Strategic, Operational, and Tactical. Too often
we look at the tactical level . . . see the heroism and
accomplishments of our servicemen and women . . . and make
conclusions re. the conduct of the war. Unfortunately, that
is

[[Page E1692]]

NOT the way to look at this current conflict. Like Vietnam,
we can do a solid job at the Tactical Level and lose the war
at the Operational and Strategic Levels. This is where we
find ourselves today in Afghanistan . . . and the path to any
kind of victory is closely linked to success in Pakistan and
India. The possibility of achieving such success across all
three countries is small . . . certainly following the
policies in place today (and yesterday.)
Again, I applaud your work and on behalf of those young men
and women who are sacrificing so far from home, I thank you.
Semper Fidelis.
Charles C. Krulak,
General, USMC (Ret.).

____________________