Ken Calvert: “The Afghan National Army Special Forces are the most capable component of the Afghan National Security Forces and have…”

“The Afghan National Army Special Forces are the most capable component of the Afghan National Security Forces and have made significant strides toward becoming an independent and effective force in Afghanistan. The only path forward to getting out of Afghanistan is to make sure that we have an effective army, special force, that can do the necessary work to make sure that the fragile Afghan governance that is there survives. The purpose of this amendment is not to limit the Afghan Special Forces but to further restrict the use of the helicopter it employs to support its mission. The development of the Afghan Army Special Operators remains a critical component of the overall operation structure and strategy to sustain the transition to Afghan security lead. In other words, if we want to get out of there by 2014, 2015, the Afghan Air Force must succeed. And it has a history, whether we like it or not, with the Mi-17. It's more efficient to expand its fleet and build on their existing knowledge of maintaining that fleet than to completely shift to an entirely different aircraft. Additionally, U.S. helicopters are more technologically advanced. They're a better helicopter, I'll agree. But it would further prolong the timelines of getting the AAF where they need to be to completely take over the program. The Mi-17 has been certified by the Department of Defense and is to be the right aircraft for the missions in Afghanistan.…”