In both my U.S. European Command and my NATO “hats,” I spend a great deal of time focusing on the challenges in Afghanistan.

We’ve just seen the Afghan people complete the first round of the Presidential election. President Obama said, “”This was an important step forward in the Afghan people’s efforts to take control of their future, even as violent extremists are trying to stand in their way.” He went on to say, “We look forward to renewing our partnership with the Afghan people as they move ahead under a new government.”

Yet the situation is extremely serious. While I remain convinced that the Coalition, working with the Afghan people, will ultimately win in Afghanistan – the stakes are high – the situation is extremely challenging. The NATO Secretary General recently said, “NATO – by which I mean both sides of the Atlantic — will do its full part, but we can’t do it alone. This has to be an international team effort, military and civilian – with more effort from the Afghans themselves as well….It will not be easy, and the past month has made that bitterly clear. But it can be done. And we will do it. Let there be no doubt about that.”

After two trips to Afghanistan in the last couple of months, many hours of conversation with our superb NATO and U.S. commander there, General Stan McChrystal, discussions with academics, experts, and historians, I agree the situation is indeed serious. But, it is far from hopeless, and what we do over the next year or so will set the course. more…

Regional government and law enforcement representatives from Somalia visited the NATO flagship HMS CORNWALL 13 August off the port of Boosaaso.  The delegation, headed by the Minister of Ports and Marine Transport, Mr Abdil Irazaq Gaaiyte met the NATO Task Force Commander, Commodore Steve Chick CBE Royal Navy. The meeting was the first direct engagement between the Boosaaso authorities and the NATO Task Force since its arrival in the region on 29 June 2009.
The purpose of the visit was to establish a working relationship between NATO, the Government, Bari regional authorities and local law enforcement agencies. Following briefs by both parties much common ground and opportunity to co-operate further was identified.

 The Task Force Commander, Commodore Steve Chick Royal Navy said:  ‘I welcome the opportunity to work with the Minister and his colleagues from Boosaaso and the Bari Region. The purpose of today’s meeting is to work out how our efforts can best be combined to deter piracy and disrupt any attacks before they take place. Although they operate from shore and we at sea, there is a shared goal; that is stopping piracy and the damage that it brings not only to international shipping but also to Somalia as a whole. There is much common ground and we must use this opportunity to align our efforts as best we can to bring maximum pressure on the pirates and those that support them’ more…

This time through, I spent time with Admiral Mark “Lobster” Fitzgerald, the four-star senior officer in command of two key organizations in my life:  U.S. Naval Forces Europe, the maritime component of my U.S. European Command hat; and Joint Forces Command Naples, the southernmost NATO operational command and a key team for us.

Lobster and I agreed that I would spend the first day focused as the U.S. Combatant Commander for Europe.  I met with his senior leadership team and received key briefings on a wide variety of topics, such as partnership engagement with a variety of European nations, and infrastructure alignment in the Navy’s many European bases.  The second day was focused on NATO activity.  Lobster’s multi-national team was exceptionally candid with their challenges and frustrations, from a desire for more consistent political and strategic guidance, to their concerns about cuts in manning that may impact some of their key tasks.   more…