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The United States has occupied Afghanistan since October of 2001, when the U.S. and Great Britain launched an offensive against the Taliban in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks. In the eight years that the conflict has endured, the U. S. has made relatively little progress in establishing social or political order. In the March 1 panel discussion, “The Way Forward in Afghanistan,” experts debated the current situation in Afghanistan and the ways in which the United States military could improve its handling of the conflict.

Hamilton College will host a panel discussion, “The Way Forward in Afghanistan,” on Monday, March 1, at 7:30 p.m., in the Kirner-Johnson Auditorium. Panelists will include former U.S. Ambassador and Christian A. Johnson Distinguished Professor of Global Political Theory Ned Walker ’62, First Lieutenant Matthew Zeller ‘04, and Hamilton student Max Currier ‘10. The discussion is free and open to the public.

Max Currier ’10 is looking for a way to increase the effectiveness of political restructuring in Afghanistan – as long as it works, and works well. He supports Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs), joint civil-military teams designed to extend the Afghan Central Government from Kabul (the capital) to Afghanistan’s 32 provinces. His goal this summer is to examine the role and efficacy of PRTs in Afghanistan.

Last May, TIME’s senior correspondent for the Middle East described Edward S. Walker, Jr., ’62 as “among the finest American diplomats to have served in the State Department” in a piece titled “Wise Men To Obama: ‘We Stand With You.’”

Edward S. Walker, Jr., '62, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates, and Hamilton's Christian A. Johnson Distinguished Professor of Global Political Theory, wrote an opinion piece, titled "Obama in Cairo, An Opportunity to Restore Faith," for the Common Ground News Service. The op-ed was picked up by Middle East Online.