Hosted by The Center on Law and Security at NYU School of Law, co-sponsored by The New America Foundation

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY AMBASSADOR RICHARD C. HOLBROOKE

As the U.S. engages in a simmering war as well as in continued attempts at building infrastructure, the conference will consider a wide-ranging set of questions in order to clarify policy choices regarding both military and civilian investment in the country. What is the current state of the Taliban? What might the reversion of Afghanistan into failed-state status mean? How prevalent – and how effective – has counterinsurgency been in the country? What are the possibilities for increasing the size of the Afghan army and for embedding U.S. advisors and troops? What role does NATO play? What are the realistic scenarios for stemming the drug trade, and for mounting reconstruction? As a result, the day promises to provide a comprehensive picture of the challenges that face America’s foreign policy establishment as one administration transitions power to the next.

Featuring speakers: Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke, Steve Coll, Peter Bergen, Barnett Rubin, Scott Horton, Steve Simon, David Kilcullen, Joanne Mariner, Imtiaz Ali, Lt. Gen., David Barno, Shuja Nawaz, Lawrence Wright, Elizabeth Rubin, Nir Rosen, Sean Langan, Doug Wankel, Andrew Wilder, Stephen Holmes, Karen Greenberg, Ambassador Omar Samad, and others.

This event is free and open to the public -- for more information, see http://www.lawandsecurity.org/events/AfghanistanToday.cfm.