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Summary:
Afghanistan's stabilization appears to be gathering strength, about three years after the U.S.-led war that brought the current government to power. Successful presidential elections held on October 9, 2004 appear to be accelerating political and economic reconstruction, and the insurgency led by remnants of the former Taliban regime has diminished significantly over the past year. The report of the 9/11 Commission recommended a long-term commitment to a secure and stable Afghanistan. Legislation passed in December 2004 to implement those recommendations (P.L. 108-458) contains provisions on Afghanistan, although most of these provisions had already formed a major part of U.S. policy for Afghanistan. Since the defeat of the Taliban, Afghanistan no longer serves as a safe base of operations for Al Qaeda. Afghan citizens are enjoying new personal freedoms that were forbidden under the Taliban, and women are participating in economic and political life, a point highlighted during First Lady Laura Bush's visit to Afghanistan on March 29, 2005. Political reconstruction is slowly following the route laid out by major Afghan factions and the international community in late 2001. A loya jirga (traditional Afghan assembly) adopted a new constitution on January 4, 2004. Presidential and parliamentary elections were to be held by June 2004, but security concerns and factional infighting caused the presidential elections to be postponed until October 9, 2004. Parliamentary and provincial elections are postponed until September 18, 2005, with district elections put off until 2006. The presidential elections were held amid high turnout and minimal violence; interim president Karzai was declared first-round winner on November 3, 2004. A new cabinet was sworn in December 27, 2004. Remaining obstacles to stability include the continued local authority of militias and growing narcotics trafficking. U.S. stabilization measures focus on strengthening the central government and its security forces. The United States and other countries are building an Afghan National Army; deploying a multinational International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to patrol Kabul and other cities; running regional enclaves to create secure conditions for reconstruction (Provincial Reconstruction Teams, PRTs); and disarming militia fighters. Approximately 18,000 U.S. troops remain in Afghanistan to continue to combat the Taliban-led insurgency. To build security institutions and assist reconstruction, the United States gave Afghanistan a total of almost $1.8 billion for FY2004, mostly through a supplemental appropriations (P.L. 108-106). An FY2005 supplemental appropriates about $3.35 billion, including funds for Afghan security forces, and another $920 million is requested for the regular FY2006 foreign aid appropriations. This paper will be updated as warranted by major developments. See also CRS Report RS21922, Afghanistan: Presidential and Parliamentary Elections; CRS Report RL32686, Afghanistan: Narcotics and U.S. Policy; and CRS Report RL32783, FY2005 Supplemental Appropriations for Iraq and Afghanistan, Tsunami Relief, and Other Activities.
