WASHINGTON — A misalignment of U.S. advisers to train Afghan police and security forces has resulted in poor training and a police force more closely resembling a paramilitary organization, according to John Sopko, the inspector general for the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction, or SIGAR.
“The U.S. lacks a deployable police development capability,” Sopko told a crowd at an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think-tank in Washington.
Over 100,000 police have been trained using “U.S. military aviators, infantry officers and civilian contractors,” he added. And at the ministerial level “mostly untrained U.S. military officers and coalition officers are conducting that mission.”
“As one U.S. officer told us, he watched TV shows like ‘Cops’ and ‘NCIS’ to learn what to teach Afghan police recruits,” Sopko said.
The misalignment of trainers and resources has resulted in an overly militarized police force, that focuses less on policing.
The police are being sent out to hold areas, and “all they are is a paramilitary force,” Sopko said.
Sopko’s remarks at CSIS were part of a discussion on SIGAR’s most recently published report about lessons learned on reconstructing Afghan security forces.
Overall, the U.S. government was ill prepared for the size and scope of security assistance needed for Afghanistan, Sopko said.
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