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While the Obama administration battles the economic crisis at home, it has another major headache abroad - Afghanistan. That was the focus today at an International Security Conference in Munich, Germany. Vice President Joe Biden led the U.S. delegation there. NPR's Rob Gifford reports from Munich.
ROB GIFFORD: Vice President Biden pledged to work with European and other allies for a stable Afghanistan. Today, Afghan president Hamid Karzai focused straight in on his country's main problem.
President HAMID KARZAI (Afghanistan): President Obama has given a vision for peace and a plan for a change strategy. Afghanistan welcomes that. So what does it take to succeed? We have troops, we have money, we have the will of the Afghan people. What should happen so we succeed? Is something lacking? Yes, there is something lacking. Better coordination in the international community is lacking.
GIFFORD: Karzai has been under a lot of pressure lately amid signs that the U.S. and Europe are frustrated with corruption and lack of leadership in Kabul, but today, at least, he got a good hearing from the conference and from Richard Holbrooke, the new U.S. Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Holbrooke said he would try to address the poor coordination of foreign money there, but he said the task in Afghanistan is more than just that, and it's much tougher than Iraq.
Ambassador RICHARD HOLBROOKE (U.S. Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan): Let's not kid ourselves. I have never in my experience in the U.S. government that started in Vietnam ever seen anything as difficult as the situation that confronts the countries involved in Afghanistan and Pakistan, AfPak, at this time. We have only scratched the surface.
GIFFORD: The Obama administration is expected to increase its military operations in Afghanistan and the number of troops there from about 34,000 to possibly as many as 60,000.
Some Europeans at the conference, though, were seeing the new consulting, listening U.S. approach as a kind of vindication for their views that civilian engagement in Afghanistan has always been as important as the military. German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung speaking through a translator.
Mr. FRANZ JOSEF JUNG (Defense Minister, Germany): (Through Translator) I think it is absolutely necessary that in Afghanistan, we should implement this process even more effectively. No security without development, but without development there will be no security either. We will not win with military means alone.
GIFFORD: But other European leaders like President Toomas Ilves of Estonia suggested that the pressure on European countries to punch their weight militarily and to get rid of the caveats for their military involvement in Afghanistan would not come just from Washington.
President TOOMAS ILVES (Estonia): My country is in Helman province with no caveats. And that's not an easy thing. I go to the funerals. Someone has to do it. And it can't just be the United States, it can't just be the U.K. In fact, it can't just be the Estonians. We all need to be in there without caveats.
GIFFORD: Now, after the talking, the problems of the implementation as the U.S. and Europe look to put the new mood of cooperation into practice. As almost every speaker today said, failure is not an option. Rob Gifford, NPR News, Munich.
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