"Mr. Bernard wrote to me just a few weeks before his son was killed in Afghanistan," Senator Collins told Admiral Mullen today during a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "In the letter, Mr. Bernard expressed serious concerns about the rules of engagement. He told me that he felt it put his son, and others, needlessly at greater risk and that, in our commendable and very American attempt to prevent civilian casualties in Afghanistan, that we were placing our troops at far greater risk."
Senator Collins, who visited Afghanistan last month a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, urged Admiral Mullen and General Stanley McChrystal, Commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, to look seriously at the concerns raised by Mr. Bernard in his letter to her.
In addition, Senator Collins raised concerns with the size of the Afghan Army and the low number of civilians from America and other countries who are working with the Afghans to provide security, basic services, and governance structures. For example, Senator Collins pointed out that while in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan she learned that there are some 10,000 American troops in the region, but only about 800 Afghan troops. This serious concern was echoed by Marines from Maine whom Senator Collins spoke with during her visit to the region.
"We're not focusing enough on the civilian-side," Senator Collins told Admiral Mullen. "I left Afghanistan uncertain about the road ahead in terms of more combat troops, but I am certain that we need a surge in the Afghan Army and I am certain that we need a civilian surge."