484 Journal of the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies N. 4 / 2014 During the Tokyo and Geneva Conferences (both in 2002), the five countries that formalised their will to participate in the security sector reform showed positive interest in helping reconstruct Afghanistan. However, a global strategy was never defined. There was no holistic approach to SSR. There was not even any coordinated planning among the different participating countries to define short-, medium- and long-term objectives. The initial design of the reform programme was, therefore, incorrect, incomplete, with no coordination between the different countries, and only addressed national criteria. We cannot talk of a true security sector reform process over the years from 2002 to 2009. 2009, however, was a decisive year for Afghanistan. It was the year when the international community introduced a radical change as regards their approach to SSR. There were three decisive events: • The creation of the NTM-A with the aim of training, advising and assisting the ANSF, and thus creating a capable and permanent force that would be able to protect the Afghan population and deny the insurgency safe haven. • The appointment of a single Lieutenant General to lead the NTM-A and the CSTC-A, providing a single holistic approach. • The international conferences in London and Kabul (2010) set out the timeline that would culminate in the phased withdrawal of the international community’s military forces. Afghanistan should gradually start to take over all security activities inherent to a modern state. Defining this timeline meant that the government could be made aware of the fact that the international community’s troops would be abandoning Afghan territory in five years’ time and that the ANSF would be expected to take over the functions. A lot has been done; but, undoubtedly, the ANSF will continue to need the support of the international community for some time to come. Nonetheless, it is now time that the lessons learned following the withdrawal of military troops from Iraq be implemented in Afghanistan, avoiding committing similar mistakes. The international community should be vigilant to the repercussions of the withdrawal of US and international community troops during the second semester of 2014. The moment has now come to observe the reactions of the insurgency, the local militias, the Afghan citizens…and to ascertain whether the ANSF are capable of countering these threats.
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