Senator Levin Says U.S.-Afghan Ties Require Better-Informed American Public --- Congressional support to continue aiding Afghanistan over the long term will require a better understanding by the American public of the progress made despite well-publicized setbacks, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin told an audience at the U.S. Institute of Peace today. --- Levin said he was hopeful about the development of a “free, peaceful and unified” Afghanistan. But he lamented relentless American media coverage of Taliban attacks and corruption while outlets downplay genuinely positive developments such as the 3 million girls now going to school and the resilience of the 350,000-strong Afghan security forces. He said the Afghan army and police have exceeded NATO commanders’ expectations, successfully responding to Taliban attacks and safeguarding two rounds of presidential elections this year. -- “What our publics believe, in a democracy such as ours, is important,” said Levin, a Michigan Democrat who is retiring after 36 years in the Senate. “The relentless negative focus of the press could have a serious negative effect on Afghanistan’s future.” The skepticism could dampen the willingness of Congress to continue supporting Afghanistan’s development despite the progress registered so far and the sacrifices of Afghan troops and civilians, he said. -- “If the American people think we’ve failed, that we’ve wasted our resources, it’s less likely that Congress would do what we should do, which is to be steady and constant in our support, economically and otherwise, for Afghanistan,” he said. And, “while Afghanistan’s gains have been impressive, they remain reversible. Afghans continue to fear the United States will abandon them, as they believe that we did after the Soviets left in the early 1990s.” -- Rad More, Viola Gienger, USIP, http://www.usip.org/publications/senator-levin-says-us-afghan-ties-require-better-informed-american-public