A pivotal moment in Afghanistan - our chance to get it right

by: Rosa DeLauro

Sun Mar 01, 2009 at 09:52:10 AM EST

Last week, I went to Afghanistan to get a first-hand look at conditions on the ground. During my time there - and in Italy, where I travelled first to be briefed by American, European, and NATO leaders - I met with countless brave men and women in uniform.

I met with Major General Richard Formica from Cheshire who, as Commander of the Combined Security Transition Command, leads our efforts to build a professional Afghan National Security Force. And at the Aviano Air Force Base, I talked with Airman First Class Wilvier Medrano from Ansonia who is part of our work everyday to stabilize the region.

I asked all the soldiers I met for their perspective - how they saw America's role in the region and what it was going to take to turn things around. We talked about some of their toughest experiences living and fighting a war zone.  We joked around, took pictures, and shared stories to bring home.

I came back from those meetings thinking about the path ahead: We cannot follow the same broken approach that the Bush Administration used to define its own foreign policy around the world. We cannot let Afghanistan and Pakistan become a safe haven for terrorists. And we cannot go it alone.

This represents a true test of the NATO alliance and a defining moment for the United States and its allies. It is time to recognize that this is a regional problem requiring a regional response.  The United States and its allies must engage Pakistan, work to improve India-Pakistan relations - such as mediating the conflict over Kashmir - and find common ground with China, Russia, and Iran to bring lasting stability to the region.

No doubt: this is the pivotal moment. A military solution alone will not end the problems in Afghanistan and Pakistan. We need to use every tool we have - military, economic, diplomatic and political - to bring stability to the region.

Which is why I keep thinking back to our soldiers: Everywhere I went in Afghanistan, it was clear that our courageous armed forces can do anything we ask of them. Our responsibility is to define the mission - to lay out a clear strategy going forward and give our soldiers the tools to pursue it.

President Obama does not have any simple choices in the weeks and months ahead. But with our national security at stake, we cannot afford to get them wrong. We nearly lost Afghanistan - this is our chance to get it right.