Report - United States Department of Defense

UNCLASSIFIED
Transition is On Track
The transition process is on track for completion by the end of 2014, with four of five tranches of
provincial districts fully in transition, and the fifth tranche entering transition this summer. 2
President Karzai announced tranche four on December 31, 2012, and all districts in this tranche
began transition by March 2013. With tranche four now underway, approximately 87 percent of
the Afghan population is living in areas where transition has occurred or is occurring and 23 of
Afghanistan’s 34 provinces are wholly in transition. Tranche four moved Afghans into the lead
for security in important population centers, economically significant districts and large areas in
the east and center of the country. Tranche five was announced this spring and will be
implemented in late summer; it will include all remaining districts in Afghanistan, most of which
are along the border with Pakistan. Areas that enter transition undergo several stages of progress
that gradually increase Afghan control. Areas that reach the final stage of transition remain at
that stage until December 2014 when all provinces and districts in Afghanistan will graduate
from transition, regardless of what stage they have achieved.
As U.S. and coalition forces draw down and re-posture, the ANSF is taking the lead in
transitioned areas and helping to expand Afghan government influence, most notably in Regional
Command–North (RC-N), where ISAF forces have substantially reduced their coverage.
Transition is a dynamic and uneven process, with some areas progressing quickly and others
moving slowly or even regressing. Notably, some areas of Badakshan Province saw increased
insurgent attacks with the ANSF taking significant casualties, indicating that ISAF will continue
to have to assess the pace and scope of transition to prevent premature withdrawal and to learn
appropriate lessons to make the transition process more effective.
Kabul remains the most densely populated and secure area in the country under the ANSF’s
security lead despite consistent insurgent attempts to conduct attacks there. Poor coordination
between the ANA and Afghan Uniform Police (AUP) is a major challenge in transitioned areas.
Attacks along access routes to major population centers as well as government ineffectiveness
also hamper transition. Governance and development continue to be inadequate in many
transitioning areas and will require continued substantial levels of assistance from the
international community well into the 2015-2024 “Decade of Transformation.”
Mixed Cooperation with Pakistan
Overall, relations between Pakistan and the United States have stabilized. Although Pakistan
and Afghanistan both acknowledge that stability in Afghanistan impacts Pakistan and vice versa,
relations between the two nations continue to be rocky and dominated by mistrust. Bilateral
visits between Pakistani and Afghan leaders increased during the past year, including recent
high-level visits to Afghanistan by Foreign Minister Khar and Chief of Army Staff General
Kayani and by Minister of Defense Bismillah Khan Mohammadi and Afghan High Peace
Council Chairman Rabbani to Pakistan. In February 2013, during a trilateral meeting in the
United Kingdom, President Karzai and President Zadari agreed to strengthen bilateral efforts to
2 In accordance with the 2010 Inteqal (Transition) Framework, which establishes the Afghan-led process, transition will occur in phases based on
the selection of five geographic areas, or “tranches.” The first fourhave already entered transition. The fifth tranche began entering transition in
June, 2013.
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