The statement from McCain:
“The Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, my friend Senator Carl Levin (D-MI), today articulated his desire to significantly accelerate the growth of the Afghan security forces. In this, I agree, and have called for several years now for aggressive measures to increase that force’s end strength. But in Senator Levin’s suggestion that we should deploy no additional U.S. combat forces to Afghanistan until these steps are completed, I could not disagree more profoundly. While I have great affection and respect for Senator Levin, I believe that this position would repeat the nearly catastrophic mistakes of Iraq and significantly set back the vital war effort in Afghanistan. “The lesson of Iraq – one that General McChrystal wants to put into place in Afghanistan – is that we make little progress merely by putting individuals through a training course and releasing them into combat. In fact, when precisely this approach was tried in Iraq, Iraqi units collapsed repeatedly in the face of attacks. It took mentorship at every level – including partnership in joint operations with U.S. forces – that built a capable Iraqi security force. Similarly, mentorship at all levels is required to build a robust and capable Afghan military and pave the way for our eventual, successful exit in Afghanistan. To do this, we will need more U.S. combat forces in Afghanistan, not less or the same amount as we have today. “In addition, vital areas in Afghanistan are controlled by the Taliban and its allies today. It will require U.S. military force to shape, clear, hold and build in these areas. If we await the day when the Afghan National Army is increased in size and capable of carrying out all of these operations fully on its own, it may well be too late. “We are reaching a decisive moment in Afghan history, and our own. I believe that the United States must commit the decisive force levels to bring about a significant change in the security environment in Afghanistan, with the aim of seeing real change over the next 12 to 18 months.”
