Is America's Mission In Afghanistan Over?

U.S. Army 1st Lts. Matthew White, left, and Kenneth Hurst, center, hold a map while talking with U.S. Army Capt. Rodney Freeman, right, about the plan of movement for a patrol through Petawa village in Afghanistan's Parwan province, June 13, 2014. White, Hurst and Freeman are assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's Company A, 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, Task Force Strike. The soldiers patrolled to disrupt enemy activity during the Afghan elections. U.S. Army photo by Cpl. George Huley

U.S. Job Far From Done In Afghanistan -- Stephen J. Hadley and Kristin M. Lord, Special to CNN

As the United States draws down its forces in Afghanistan and shifts from direct combat to the narrower mission of countering terrorism and training Afghan forces, some might think this is the time to declare “job done” and focus U.S. attention elsewhere. That would be a mistake. As the current violence in Iraq illustrates, the gains won by our military are fragile. Peace, once won, must be sustained.

Afghanistan is now in the delicate process of laying the foundation for a democratic political transition – the first since President Hamid Karzai assumed the presidency. As many as 7 million Afghans, or around 60 percent of eligible voters, have twice defied the Taliban and cast ballots to select the country’s next president, first in the general election and again in this month’s runoff.

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My Comment: These authors are optimistic on Afghanistan's future .... I am not. But if you need your "optimism fix" .... the above article is for you.