Number: RL31389
Title: Afghanistan: Challenges and Options for Reconstructing a Stable and Moderate State
Authors: Richard P. Cronin, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division 
Abstract: This report provides information on and analysis of the current situation in Afghanistan, taking into consideration the country's essential characteristics and political developments since about the time of the overthrow of the last Afghan King, Zahir Shah, in 1973, and sketches out four possible scenarios for Afghanistan's future. Finally, the report identifies and analyzes factors that will influence Afghanistan's political future, and discusses three policy areas in particular in which actions by the United States could be crucial to the achievement of the U.S. goal of a peaceful, stable, democratic, and terrorist-free Afghanistan. An appendix contains key documents relating to the December 2001 Bonn Agreement, which is the framework for current efforts to create a stable and democratic Afghanistan.
Pages: 47
Date: Updated July 11, 2002