Remembering a Road: How One U.S. Development Project Provides Insight into America’s Complicated Legacy in Afghanistan

Abstract

In 2009, the New York Times published a short article detailing how a local warlord in southern Afghanistan was receiving millions of dollars a month to “secure” a local highway for U.S. forces. What the article failed to note was that the road was built by United States Army and the United States Agency for International Development from 2004–2005 as the centerpiece of the U.S. counterinsurgency effort in Southern Afghanistan. The story of the road is one of optimistic U.S. construction, co-option by a local strongman, and ultimately security collapse and Taliban control. Analysis of the road construction effort and what occurred after it was completed reveals dynamics that impacted and ultimately derailed both the counterinsurgency effort in region through which the road ran and the broader U.S. effort in Afghanistan. It also provides lessons that should be retained and considered before the United States’ next effort to both defeat an adversary and reshape a society.

Acknowledgments

This article is dedicated to Dr. David Johnson, a formidable intellectual, dedicated mentor and close friend who passed away on 30 October 2022. Dr. Johnson inspired the research effort and doggedly advocated for the publication of its results for over a decade. His unswerving belief in the power that even one voice can have on our Nation’s Army inspired the author, and many others who Dr. J mentored over the years. He will be sorely missed.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1 Dexter Filkins, “With U.S. Aid, Warlord Builds Afghan Empire.” The New York Times, 5 June 2010, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/world/asia/06warlords.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1 (accessed 16 September 2010).

2 The author completed research for this article in conjunction with attendance at the United States Army Command and General Staff College in 2011. The full thesis on this topic can be reviewed at extension: http://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA547522.pdf.

3 Carl Forsberg, Afghanistan Report 3: The Taliban’s Campaign for Kandahar (Washington, DC: the Institute for the Study of War, 2009), 15.

4 Ahmed Rashid, Descent into Chaos (New York: Penguin Group, 2008), 4.

5 PBS.org, “Interview: U.S. Army Captain Jason Amerine,” http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/campaign/interviews/amerine.html (accessed 10 March 2011).

6 American Veterans Center.org, “The Battle of Tarin Kowt: An Excerpt from Veterans Chronicles,” http://www.americanveteranscenter.org/magazine/avq/avq-issueii/the-battle-of-tarin-kowt-an-excerpt-from-veterans-chronicles/ (accessed 10 March 2011).

7 Rashid, 258.

8 Carl Forsberg, Afghanistan Report 5: Politics and Power in Kandahar (Washington, DC: the Institute for the Study of War, 2010), 13.

9 Colonel(retired) Richard Pedersen, Commander, Combined Task Force Bronco (3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division), Interview by author, Fort Leavenworth, KS, 30 March 2011.

10 Colonel Kenneth F. McKenzie, Major Roberta L. Shea, and Major Christopher Phelps, “Marines Deliver in Mountain Storm,” The Naval Institute: Proceedings, 130/11/1221 (November 2004): 1.

11 Ibid.

12 Ibid.

13 Major Bruce Cox, “Construction in the Contingency Environment: Balancing Military Needs with Congressional Oversight,” The Reporter (Washington: Office of the Judge Advocate General, United States Air Force, March 2005), 7.

14 Comprehensive Needs Assessment for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction in the Transport Sector (Manila: Asian Development Bank, August 2002), 10.

15 United States Government Accounting Office, GAO-08-689, 51.

16 COL(R) Nancy Wetherill, Commander, Task Force Coyote, 109th Engineer Group, Telephone Interview, 2 February 2011.

17 Pedersen, 30 March 2011.

18 Donald Wright, A Different Kind of War: The United States Army in Operation Enduring Freedom, October 2001 to September 2005 (Fort Leavenworth, KS: Combat Studies Institute Press, May 2010), 280–96.

19 United States Institute for Peace, “Afghanistan Experience Project: Interview #32,” http://www.usip.org/files/file/resources/collections/histories/afghanistan/32.pdf (accessed 29 March 2011).

20 CPT(R) Gregory Parranto, HSC/864th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy) commander and security commander for the Kandahar to Tarin Kowt Road construction project from April to September 2005, Telephonic interview with author, 6 March 2011.

21 Pedersen, 30 March 2011.

22 COL Bertrand Ges, TF Gundevil Commander in Southern Afghanistan from July 2004 to July 2005, Telephone interview by author, 14 February 2011.

23 Wright, 292.

24 LTC Jerry Farnsworth, TF Pacemaker Executive Officer from March 2004 to April 2005, Telephone Interview by author, 8 February 2011.

25 COL Paul Paolozzi, TF Pacemaker Commander from March 2004 to April 2005, Telephone interview by author, 25 February 2011.

26 Ibid.

27 Parranto, 6 March 2011.

28 Ibid.

29 Ibid.

30 Ges, 14 February 2011.

31 Forsberg, Afghanistan Report 3, 25.

32 Information drawn from author’s experience as TF Pacemaker Construction officer from March 2004 to April 2005.

33 Parranto, 6 March 2011.

34 Reuters.com, “Bomb kills Afghan District Chief and Two Police,” 3 December 2005, http://www.talktalk.co.uk/news/world/reuters/2005/12/03/bombkillsafghandistrictchiefandtwopolice.html (accessed 11 May 2011).

35 Pajwok.com, “Uruzgan-Kandahar Highway Commander Injured in Explosion,” 19 February 2006, http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2006/02/19/uruzgan-kandahar-highwaycommander-injured-explosion (accessed 11 April 2011).

36 Farnsworth, 8 February 2011.

37 Major John Litz, Resident Engineer for the Kandahar Area Office, Afghanistan Engineering District, United States Army Corps of Engineers from January to July 2006, Telephone Interview, 27 February 2011.

38 Frontline World, “Afghanistan: The Other War,” 10 April 2007, http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/afghanistan604/video_index.html (accessed 11 April 2011).

39 Major John Litz, 27 February 2011.

40 Frontline World, 10 April 2007.

41 Major John Litz, 27 February 2011.

42 Paul McGeough, “Doing the Bidding of Organized Crime,” Sydney Morning Herald, 22 August 2009, http://www.smh.com.au/world/doing-the-bidding-of-organisedcrime-20090821-ett6.html (accessed 11 April 2011).

43 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Warlord, Inc.: Extortion and Corruption along the U.S. Supply Chain in Afghanistan, U.S. House of Representatives, June 2010, 25.

44 Filkins, “With U.S. Aid, Warlord Builds Afghan Empire.”

45 Jeremy Kelly, “Long Road to Tarin Kowt,” The Australian, 28 April 2009, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/long-road-to-tarin-kowt/story-e6frg6so-1225704435431 (accessed 11 April 2011).

46 Christoph Reuter, “The Warlord of the Highway,” Vice.com, https://www.vice.com/en/article/ppzb8z/warlord-of-the-highway-226-v16n11 (accessed 7 September 2022).

47 Politifact.com, “Obama has increased Troops in Afghanistan,” Politifact, 30 May 2010, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/may/30/colin-powell/obamahas-increased-troops-afghanistan/ (accessed 11 April 2011).

48 LTC John Neumann, Commander of TF 1-17 Infantry, 5-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team in Kandahar Province from July 2009 to July 2010, Telephone Interview, 13 March 2011.

49 Ibid.

50 Rafael Epstein and Ben Doherty, “Afghan Warlord Promoted to Police Chief,” The Age, 9 August 2011, https://www.smh.com.au/national/afghan-warlord-promoted-to-police-chief-20110808-1ijby.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

51 James L. Creighton, “Shades of Gray in Afghanistan: A Former U.S. Brigade Commander Recounts His Experience Dealing with a Recently Assassinated Afghan Warlord,” The Diplomat, 8 April 2015, https://thediplomat.com/2015/04/shades-of-gray-in-afghanistan/ (accessed 7 September 2022).

52 Rafael Epstein, “Afghan Warlord’s Men Trained in Australia,” The Sydney Morning Herald, 29 October 2010, https://www.smh.com.au/national/afghan-warlords-men-trained-in-australia-20101028-175pw.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

53 Dan Oakes, “General defends Afghan Warlord Ties,” The Sydney Morning Herald, 7 December 2010, https://www.smh.com.au/national/general-defends-afghan-warlord-ties-20101206-18mum.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

54 Rafael Epstein and Ben Doherty, 9 August 2011.

55 Seth Robson, Last Australian Combat Troops leave Afghanistan,” Stars and Stripes, 16 December 2013, https://www.stripes.com/last-australian-combat-troops-leave-afghanistan-1.257879 (accessed 7 September 2022).

56 Paul McGeough, “Death of New Age Warlord Matiullah Khan Leaves Oruzgan at Edge of Abyss,” The Sydney Morning Herald, 20 March 2015, https://www.smh.com.au/world/death-of-new-age-warlord-matiullah-khan-leaves-oruzgan-at-edge-of-abyss-20150320-1m3vjw.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

57 Ismael Sameem, “Taliban Kill Second Police Chief from Same Afghan Province,” Reuters, 26 April 2015, https://www.reuters.com/article/cnews-us-afghanistan-attack-idCAKBN0NH05T20150426 (accessed 7 September 2022).

58 Agence France-Presse, “Fall of Afghan Highway Reveals Virulent Power Struggle,” https://nz.news.yahoo.com/fall-of-afghan-highway-reveals-virulent-power-struggle-31528486.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

59 Taimoor Shah and Mujib Mashal, “Afghan Forces Begin Mission to Break Taliban’s Grip on Highway,” The New York Times, 2 May 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/03/world/asia/afghan-forces-begin-mission-to-break-talibans-grip-on-highway.html (accessed 7 September 2022).

60 Shawn Snow, “Afghanistan: Taliban Threaten Tarin Kot Again,” The Diplomat, 24 September 2016, https://thediplomat.com/2016/09/afghanistan-taliban-threaten-tarin-kot-again/ (accessed 7 September 2022).

61 The Liaison Office, Ten Years Later: An Assessment of Uruzgan Province a Decade After the Dutch Military Departure, Cordaid Netherlands, 23 November 2020, https://www.cordaid.org/en/publications/ten-years-later-an-assessment-of-uruzgan-province-a-decade-after-the-dutch-military-departure/, 2–6.

62 Ibid., 11.

63 Special Broadcasting Service, “‘Our Wish is Peace’: Uruzgan Governor Says Australia’s Legacy in Afghanistan Endures,” 14 July 2021, https://www.sbs.com.au/language/pashto/en/article/our-wish-is-peace-uruzgan-governor-says-australias-legacy-in-afghanistan-endures/uozqbn4ik (accessed 7 September 2022).

64 LTC Craig Quadrato, TF Pacemaker Operations Officer from July 2004 to April 2005, Telephone interview by author, 31 January 2011.

65 Politico Magazine, “‘We Never Got It. Not Even Close’: Afghanistan Veterans Reflect on 20 Years of War,” 10 September 2021, https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/09/10/politico-mag-afghan-vets-roundtable-506989 (accessed 7 September 2022).

66 Donald Frederick Butler, Why Foreign Counterinsurgency Campaigns Fail, Doctoral Dissertation, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, December 2009, ii.

67 U.S. Government Accountability Office, AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION: GAO Work since 2002 Shows Systematic Internal Control Weaknesses that Increased the Risk of Waste, Fraud, and Abuse, GAO-21-32R, Washington, DC, 27 July 2021, 1.

68 Major John Litz, 27 February 2011.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Colonel Nicholas O. Melin

Colonel Nicholas O. Melin is an Army officer with three years of deployed combat experience in Afghanistan. He currently serves on the Joint Staff.