Sphere of Influence
In western Afghanistan, the United States tries to counter Iran's deep ties
KHOSAN, AFGHANISTAN—Dotted with goat trails and mud huts, this tiny village 10 miles from the Iranian border is the site of a proxy battle that the U.S. military is waging against Iran for Afghan hearts and minds. The American efforts range from paying for small-scale construction projects that create badly needed local jobs to providing boxes of school supplies. But it is obvious that this is Iran's neighborhood; plaques commemorate Iranian donations that helped build schools and bridges, and brightly decorated "jingo" trucks, teetering and loaded 20 feet tall, cart cement, honey, and other Iranian imports from across the border. The road these trucks drive on was built by Iran, and, more often than not, the fuel in their tanks comes from across the border as well.
Afghan officials say it's vital for the United States to step up its influence in the area. Certainly, Iran has been flexing its muscles here. Afghan officials claim that, just across the border, Iran is operating training camps for opposition forces. And military officials charge that Iran is funneling aid and arms not only to its former Taliban foes but also to Afghan warlords who wield influence in the area and in the Afghan government. Border police point to weapons, including antitank mines, that they have intercepted coming from Iran. "Maybe this is how our friendly neighbors are trying to help us out with ammo," jokes Col. Ramadullah Safi, Herat's chief of border police.
Weapons flow. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said last week that he had seen new information that "makes it pretty clear there's a fairly substantial flow of weapons" coming across the border from Iran. The debate has centered on whether the Iranian government itself is responsible or whether the culprits are mainly black market weapons traders. Given the quantities, it is "difficult to believe...that it's taking place without the knowledge of the Iranian government," Gates said, adding that he hasn't seen "any intelligence specifically to this effect." The No. 2 State Department official, Nicholas Burns, went a step further, citing "irrefutable evidence" that the arms shipments were coming from the Iranian government.
The region has long had a love-hate relationship with Iran, where tens of thousands of refugees fled during the Soviet and Taliban years. Last month, Iran forcibly repatriated some 52,000 refugees, straining the fragile economies of border towns. Some senior Afghan officials believe this was done by Iran to make trouble for President Hamid Karzai—and to drive home the point that his government is unable to employ and house the Afghan people.
In small towns along the border, where unemployment is rampant and drug addiction to crystal, a form of opium, is on the rise, local government officials in desperate need of services are urging the U.S. military to become even more involved in their communities. "They tell us, 'Hey, Iran's here, they're working in our area—you need to show that you're here, too,'" says Army Capt. Ray Gilmore, the civil affairs officer for U.S. military forces in Herat. Other officials add that some towns and leaders exploit the tensions between the two countries. "They'll play us off each other," says one senior U.S. military official. "We hear, 'Iran has done this. What are you going to do?'"
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