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Karl Eikenberry

U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan (since February 2009)

Why He Matters

Eikenberry was at the center of one of the most pressing debates in Obama's early administration - how many extra U.S. troops should be sent to Afghanistan? The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan opposed increasing troop levels in the country, putting him at odds with other members of Obama's team.

In classified memos that were later leaked to The New York Times, Eikenberry expressed deep doubts about Afghan president Hamid Karzai's suitability as a "strategic partner" and the extent to which Afghanistan would become dependent on American funds and troops. He also called for more funding for development and reconstruction projects.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Deputy Chairman, NATO (2007 to 2009); Top American Commander, Afghanistan (2005 to 2007)
Hometown: Goldsboro, North Carolina
Alma Mater: West Point, B.S., 1973; Harvard, M.A.; Stanford, M.A.
Spouse: Ching Eikenberry

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Email : N/A
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Path to Power

After growing up and attending high school in North Carolina, Eikenberry attended West Point Military Academy where he graduated as a second lieutenant in 1973. He was later a national security fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, and earned an M.A. from Harvard in East Asian studies. He also holds an M.A. from Stanford in political science.

In the Army, Eikenberry commanded and held staff positions in airborne, ranger, and mechanized infantry units in the U.S., Korea and Europe. He spent a significant amount of time in China, serving as an assistant Army (and later Defense Department) attache in the American embassy there, and earning a degree in Chinese history from Nanjing University.

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He later relocated to Washington, D.C. and served as the senior country director for China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Mongolia in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and later as head of the Strategy, Plans and Policy Directorate of the Army Staff.

Afghanistan Tours and NATO

Eikenberry served two tours in Afghanistan. During his first tour, from September 2002 to September 2003, he served as U.S. security coordinator and chief of the Office of Military Cooperation where he was influential in efforts to establish and strengthen the Afghan army and police force. Between tours he served as director of strategic planning and policy for the U.S. Pacific Command based in Hawaii.

In 2005, Eikenberry replaced Lt. Gen. David Barno as the top American commander in Afghanistan. He was commander of the Combined Forces in Afghanistan for 18 months. During that time, he continued to focus on growing Afghan security forces, but also pressed to increase the number of U.S. troops. He also issued early warnings about the need to deal with neighboring Pakistan.

In 2007, Eikenberry left his post in Afghanistan to serve as deputy chairman of NATO's Military Committee for two years. The committee advises the civilian decision-making bodies in NATO as well as the Alliance's two strategic commanders, and prepares annual risk assessments.

U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan

Tapped by Obama for the post in February 2009, Eikenberry was confirmed by the Senate as the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan in April. He retired from the military as a lieutenant general on April 28, 2009, the day before he was sworn-in as ambassador.

When he was first named, Eikenberry was lauded for his experience in Afghanistan, his focus on building the Afghan army, and his good relationship with Hamid Karzai and American allies in Europe. His appointment was considered blessed by Afpak envoy Holbrooke.

But Eikenberry's relationship with Karzai and senior U.S. officials involved in Afghanistan deteriorated over the following year. While the Obama administration debated different options for troop surges in November 2009, he sent a series of classified memos warning strongly against a surge. He expressed deep concern about corruption in Karzai's government and the difficulty the U.S. would have extricating itself from the conflict, and decried insufficient funding for reconstruction projects.

According to defense officials, Eikenberry's opinions rankled Gen. McChrystal, then the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan. He predicted that without the deployment of an additional tens of thousands of troops within the next year, the mission would "likely result in failure."

Though President Obama authorized the deployment of an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan on an even faster timetable than McChrystal had requested, he also tried to address Eikenberry's concerns. Obama announced that the U.S. would begin withdrawing troups by July 2011, and said the U.S. would hold Afghan officials responsible for corruption.

A leak of the full contents of Eikenberry's classified memos to The New York Times in January 2010 revealed the intensity of Eikenberry's views, and exacerbated his tense relationship with McChrystal and other administration officials. Eikenberry had said Karzai was "not an adequate strategic partner," and accused the Afghan president of avoiding "responsibility for any sovereign burden, whether defense, governance or development."

Gen. McChrystal's Departure

An explosive Rolling Stone story drew even more attention to the fraught relationship between Eikenberry and McChrystal. Citing unnamed sources close to both men, reporter Michael Hastings wrote that Eikenberry was resentful for having to answer to a former subordinate, and "furious" that McChrystal had shut him out of the role of viceroy in Afghanistan as a way to diminish Eikenberry's influence.

Hastings also described McChrystal's feelings of betrayal after the memos leaked in January 2010 (McChrystal said Eikenberry "covers his flank for the history books. Now if we fail, [he] can say, 'I told you so.'") and underscored Eikenberry's strained relationship with Karzai.

The story ultimately resulted in McChrystal's ouster, and brought Eikenberry and other officials under scrutiny. After Obama replaced McChrystal with Gen. David Petraeus, some lawmakers and pundits called for new diplomatic appointments. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), echoed by other conservative voices, urged President Obama to replace Eikenberry with former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker.

The Issues

Eikenberry was one of the only Obama administration officials to question a troop surge in Afghanistan during deliberations in fall 2009. But after President Obama announced his plan for an accelerated troop surge, Eikenberry claimed that his concerns had been addressed and joined other administration officials in selling the new policy to Congress and our European allies.

Building an Afghan Army

During Eikenberry's first tour of Afghanistan in 2002 and 2003, one of his main objectives was the establishment of the Afghan National Army (ANA). Before he left, he asked the United States Military Academy to help establish a National Military Academy of Afghanistan.

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As commander between 2005 and 2007, Eikenberry continued to treat the build-up of the Afghan army as a priority. As U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, he warned that Afghan security forces would become dependant on American troops and wouldn't be prepared to assume control once American forces started to withdraw. He also suggested increasing financial incentives for Afghans to join the army and police forces.

"Simply keeping the [ANA] force at current levels requires tens of thousands of new recruits every year to replace attrition losses and battlefield casualties," he wrote in a classified memo. "If our assumption is that more forces are essential to stabilize Afghanistan, then we should investigate the benefits to security of making service in the Afghan security forces more attractive, rather than relying more heavily on foreign troops."

Relationship With Hamid Karzai

When he was first appointed U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, Eikenberry reportedly had a good relationship with the president. But by November 2009 that relationship had evidently deteriorated.

In memos to central members of the Obama administration, Eikenberry said, "President Karzai is not an adequate strategic partner." He said Karzai had yet to "embrace his role as commander-in-chief," a failure to assert power that weakened Afghan security forces. He also accused the Afghan president of being slow to address corruption in his own government.

In the wake of Hasting's Rolling Stone story, which portrayed Gen. McChrystal as the only American official able to work well with Karzai, relations became even more strained. A few days after this story ran, Karzai's attorney general accused Eikenberry of threatening to have him fired if he did not go after an allegedly corrupt Afghan banker.

Securing Pakistan

While the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Eikenberry issued warnings about the importance of securing the border with Pakistan and addressing the havens the bordering country provides for al-Qaeda fighters.

In his 2009 memos, Eikenberry reiterated the importance of dealing with Pakistan. "Pakistan will remain the single greatest source of Afghan instability so long as the border sanctuaries remain," he said. "Until this sanctuary problem is fully addressed, the gains from sending additional forces may be fleeting."

The Network

Obama's choice to appoint Eikenberry, a career military man, to a diplomatic post was a highly-unusual move. But his expertise on the conflict was considered a key advantage, and his views - strenghtening the Afghan military forces, the importance of Pakistan - were in line with arguments Obama made on the 2008 campaign trail.

When he was appointed, Eikenberry's relationship with NATO and America's European allies was also considered a major advantage. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has repeatedly criticized NATO ally countries for failing to meet their pledges for combat troops, transport helicopters and support personnel.

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Additional Resources