Changing hands: Badger State Soldiers prepare Afghans for withdrawal

WI, UNITED STATES

08.29.2013

Story by 1st Lt. Joseph Trovato  

Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office       

MADISON, Wis. - Nearing the end of their deployment to Afghanistan, 16 Wisconsin National Guardsmen have been an integral part of a national strategy aimed at transitioning security and responsibility for the country back to Afghan hands.

Since the U.S.-led invasion following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. military has had a heavy troop presence on the ground to facilitate Afghanistan’s shift toward democracy and the construction of an effective military and police force. With an American troop withdrawal looming in 2014, the Wisconsin National Guard’s 104th Security Force Advise and Assist Team (SFAAT) has been responsible for preparing its Afghan counterparts for life after the U.S. military withdrawal.

A key part of the overall American exit strategy from the country, the 104th has spent its deployment working from a remote outpost within an Afghan Border Police base, working hand-in-hand with their Afghan allies and building a trusting relationship in the process.

“We have trust in our counterparts, said Wautoma, Wis., native 1st Lt. Joseph Reese, a fires advisor and the team’s emergency relief program manager.

Reese said shared group meals with the border police have increased trust between the SFAAT and its Afghan partners. Building rapport by discussing commonalities like family and hobbies has helped foster the growing relationships.

“Our relationship with our Afghan counterparts is excellent,” said Lt. Col. David Larson, the unit’s commander. “They are like brothers, and we are teaching them a lot of important processes and concepts that will help them stand on their own feet after coalition forces depart Afghanistan in 2014.”

Still, communicating across cultural and language barriers is far from easy.

“Complicated and simple at the same time,” said Capt. John Flynn when asked to describe the relationship. “But through it all I think that Afghans are some of the most hospitable people I have ever met. They have willingly shared everything they have with us, and that has been humbling.”

While training Afghan soldiers and police to stand on their own after U.S. forces leave the country remains the unit’s top priority, the SFAAT has also been instrumental in starting two 12-room schools and a deep water well. They have also distributed school supplies donated by friends and families from Wisconsin to schools in remote villages along the borders of Iran and Turkmenistan. The unit delivered 175 desks to one school that previously had no furniture.

The 16-member team works primarily to improve Afghan Border Police operations, logistics, communications, and community involvement initiatives, said Reese, who noted the growth he has seen during the deployment from his counterpart — a border police tribal officer.

“The tribal officer is responsible for interactions with the citizens in their area of responsibility,” he wrote in an e-mail. “Before we arrived in country the tribal officer had little to no interactions with the citizens. We were able to mentor the tribal officer by helping him plan projects in nearby villages, and after a couple months, the tribal officer was planning missions by himself with very little support from our team.”

Flynn, an intelligence officer from Sun Prairie, Wis., said he has seen similar growth in the self-reliance of the Afghans. Most notably, the Afghans with which he worked transitioned from reporting through American channels, to now reporting through their own system, resulting in increased coordination between Afghan forces.

“There will be an enduring U.S. and international presence in Afghanistan for many years to come providing the country with unlimited opportunity,” Flynn said. “That wouldn’t happen without having confidence in the ability of the Afghan people to create a stable and economically successful country.”

Larson, who deployed to Afghanistan for the first time four years ago, said the progress since then has been remarkable. At that time, he said, the Afghan National Security Forces were in their infancy, and coalition forces led the way, though they often put Afghan leadership in prominent positions for appearances.

“Now, Afghans are in the lead,” Larson wrote in an e-mail.

Afghan National Security Forces numbers have swelled to more than 300,000, and they operate independently for the most part, he said.

“They still have a long way to go to achieve a higher quality of performance, particularly in the areas of planning and logistics,” Larson said, noting that Afghanistan will likely continue to experience “growing pains” in the coming years.

Curbing corruption, clamping down on drug and weapons smuggling, and harnessing Afghanistan’s natural gas and mineral resources for the broader benefit of the people will all be critical to the country’s future, he said.

The 104th SFAAT, formed out of an all-volunteer group, is preparing to return home to Wisconsin. The unit trained at Camp Shelby, Miss., and Fort Polk, La., before deploying to Afghanistan in January.

• Date Taken: 08.29.2013
• Date Posted: 08.29.2013 15:59
• Story ID: 112850
• Location: WI, US