Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team Program as a Model for Assisting the Development of an Effective Afghan National Army

Through its security assistance mission in Afghanistan, NATO is reinforcing member countries` collective security at home and providing Afghanistan the chance to build a secure and promising future for its people. The international approach must be comprehensive and every instrument of international power must be applied. The military is only a part of the solution in Afghanistan. The ISAF campaign plan consists of three lines of operation: Security, Governance and Reconstruction and Development. The Afghan National Security Forces are the most legitimate forces to provide security for Afghans; hence, they should hold and sustain security in the Afghan villages after the insurgency is cleared. The OMLT program is a NATO ISAF measure to assist building the ANA along the security line of operation, in order to allow the Afghans to win in Afghanistan. The OMLT program is connecting people in Afghanistan, making NATO member forces more interoperable on tactical level. The OMLT program also serves as a change agent for military development in each nation providing forces to the program. The OMLTs are important to the ISAF Commander`s exit strategy. NATO should rise to the occasion and provide the number of certified OMLTs required in order to comprehensively assist the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to bring the ANA up to operating capability.