We didn’t choose the war in Afghanistan; 9/11 chose it for us. But that doesn’t make our job any easier.

Afghanistan is the fifth of six countries where we have started nation-building in the past 20 years. We haven’t finished with any of them yet. As we consider the future of Afghanistan, we must always remember how hard a task we face. Afghanistan is especially tough — what do we expect from a poor, landlocked, mountainous country?