WASHINGTON, May 6 (UPI) -- Military gains in Afghanistan are emerging as the counterinsurgency strategy takes hold, though reliable partners are lacking, U.S. lawmakers said.
Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate are conducting hearings in Washington on the progress of the international military effort under way in Afghanistan.
U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar, R-Ind., the ranking member on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, expressed concern about the political leadership in Kabul.
Lugar praised the civilian government emerging in Helmand province in the wake of a military push into the Taliban heartland but said security in the south remains volatile.
Progress, he said, is possible only if Washington and its allies have a reliable partner in Afghan President Hamid Karzai, whose effectiveness has been questioned "by several voices" in Washington.
Karzai came under fire in August following evidence that presidential elections were tainted by widespread fraud. Karzai, for his part, criticized Western allies for rising civilian casualties in his country, referring to international forces as occupiers at times
U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, testified Wednesday that he saw the Afghan mission as a success, however.
"We will continue to closely monitor the progress in Afghanistan under the new counterinsurgency strategy to make sure that our troops have all of the resources they need to bring us success and return home quickly," he said.
Karzai is scheduled to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama next week in Washington.
